Revenge Of The Digimon
by dragonsunlight
Summary: Sequel to Kouji's Revenge - RECOMMENDED to skim Kouji's Revenge first. The Real World and Digital World collide and Chaos threatens all. The answer lies closer than they originally thought. FINISHED
1. Explanations And More Confusion

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon!

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A/N- Hello! Kaea (dragonsunlight) here! Glad to be back. Well, I never said the series was over, did I? Third part is here! And turn away if you haven't read the second part. Because otherwise, your hopes of not being confused...well, it's probably impossible to not get confused. Tell me if you don't. That would be cool.

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Summary-(Sequel to Not The Bandanas 2: Kouji's Revenge) Read NTB2 first. The Real World and Digital World collide as the digi-destined must rise up once more to stop the oncoming evil. This time, with the help of a few new friends.

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Chapter 1-

Explanations And More Confusion

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"I'm listening," he murmured when she stopped talking.

Kako snapped out of her reverie to hit Kouichi's arm. "Okay, Mr. Lovesick-"

"I'm not lovesick," Kouichi whined.

"Shut up. Your head better be where it's supposed to be. Just because I said I love you-"

Feeling impatient, Kouichi interrupted, "Shut up and hurry up."

"So, when I was about...five or so, my mom gave me that locket. Something about keeping it safe, yadda yadda, whatever, but it was special, and she always made sure I had it on. It's really, really hard to explain, but..."

Falling quiet, Kako shut her eyes. "The worlds are parallel to one another. Digital and Real. They're...parallel. So are the beings that inhabit those worlds. You see, each person on Earth has a digimon in the Digital World. That digimon is tied to them. They are tied together. What happens to one happens to the other. Not in the same manner, but...

"This isn't always the case. Some digimon and humans are born without those ties. Hideki, for example, although he would resemble Duskmon the best, has no...no shadow. You, strangely enough, have two; Lowemon and Duskmon are tied to you, whether you like it or not. Takuya's is Agunimon, and so on, you see? Almost each human has a digimon shadow, almost each digimon has a human shadow."

Kouichi frowned. "How do you know Hideki doesn't have one? And what's your shadow?"

She continued, ignoring his questions, "Among the ones without shadows, a select few are given the opportunity of an important role in the two roles. The three major roles would be Ophanimon, Seraphimon and Cherubimon. They maintain the peace of the two roles and keep the gate from one world to the next closed. Other roles would be like yours...the legendary spirits.

"Sometimes, it's possible to switch shadows, mainly for digimon. Really, the system is too complex to describe in great detail. That brings us to four years ago, when you had your _great_ fall."

"_Wait_," Kouichi huffed, "you never answered my questions!"

"Shut _up_," Kako growled. "Four years ago, my mom came up to me and asked me six people I would send to the digital world if I could. Well, naturally, I named Izumi first, and then you. I also believe I named Kouji as, 'the idiot twin of Kouichi's.' And then, I just described what the other people should be like. I wanted someone for Izumi. Someone she could count on, who wouldn't let her down. I wanted someone who could understand her. I wanted someone to help her see how kind she really is, or at least show her friendships can't just disappear. I wanted those other people to show her that...that not everyone would just leave her. I think that's what I asked.

"Anyway, shortly after that, my mom fell ill. See, our family has been in the shadow business for a long time. We pretty much always get one of those 'roles.' All I know is at the time, my grandfather was angry with my mother for some reason. Well, anyway, she died, and I think that's when Gramps lost it. We moved away. Hideki let me call him often. No one visited us; we didn't visit anyone. And, w-well, that's wandering away from the point. The point is, my mom was Ophanimon's shadow. Gramps is Cherubimon's. Right now, Rai is Ophanimon's. And...I'm up next."

_Shadow...? She's Ophanimon's...shadow?_ Kouichi shut his eyes. "So...how...?"

Kako let out a small laugh, "Guess you're still confused. See, Gramps was one of those exceptions, and well...there's no chance Rai is. Um, Kouichi?"

His hands were clenched. "She's going to die?" asked Kouichi.

"Y-yeah..."

Kouichi opened both eyes and took a deep breath. Learning about the parallels was as if he was drowning in icy water with no hope of ever swimming out again. "So, I'm probably right..."

The girl frowned. "What?" she inquired bluntly.

A grin appeared on his face. "Before this stupidness in which we figured out what was wrong, I came here to check Ogata's computer. I had suspicions of this _shadow_ thing, but more like digimon possessing people. So..."

_Wow, he's too smart,_ Kako thought, blinking in disbelief. _It took forever for_ Kouji_ to understand, but he came up with his own theory similar to that fact? I hold my ground. Twins are weird_.

"...I came up with the conclusion that Ogata's possessed by Lucemon!" Kouichi declared proudly.

"H-_huh_?"

Kouichi's face fell. "Oh...that's not it?"

Shrugging, Kako replied, "I don't really know everyone's shadow. Depending on personality, you can sometimes tell. But...Ogata doesn't seem like Lucemon. More of an Ogremon to me. But anyway, Lucemon's _definitely_ back. And he's close, too." The girl shivered. "Or," she added, "I'm just cold." Noticing the look on Kouichi's face, Kako hastily said, "But anyway, where were we?"

Immediately, Kouichi looked away and leaned against the wall of the classroom with a sigh. He quietly admitted, "I'm overly confused."

"Me too."

"Why are we annoyed with each other and normal the next second?"

"Search me."

"No thanks."

Kako's eyes narrowed. "_Anyway_...point is, there's obviously some trouble, or there'd be _no_ reason to call a loser like Duskmon!" she chirped happily. "And if something's wrong, it means a less boring life, and-"

"And...?" Kako fell silent. Clearing his throat, Kouichi repeated, "_And_...?"

"There's a chance to overthrow the shadow system. That's my goal," she whispered. "Now how do we get out of here?"

_Overthrow the system...?_ Kouichi shrugged. A second later, he let out a nervous laugh. "So, then, in the hospital...you saw them, huh?"

"Duskmon's a jerk."

"Eh, well...he does tend to have an ego problem around the others," admitted the boy. Sheepishly, he murmured, "But he's not all that bad."

"He's a jerk!" Kako insisted.

Kouichi shifted uncomfortably under her glare. "W-well..."

"He's a gosh darn _jerk_! He's a-wait...breaking into Ogata's computer? Why didn't _I_ think about that?" Kako jumped up and ran to the computer. "_Please_ turn on..."

Kouichi sucked in air between his teeth and held still as Kako turned on the computer. A groan was emitted from both of them when nothing happened. Kouichi ran over and examined the computer, checking to make sure the connections were secure. "Well, everything's connected correctly," he grumbled. "Maybe the power got cut. I thought the light bulbs just died."

"The power got cut. Right. And that's why there's light seeping in from the hall!"

"Sure, Ogata's is the only room without power."

"Well you never _really_ know," Kako commented. "After all-"

"Sh," Kouichi suddenly murmured, covering Kako's mouth. Voices from the hall could be heard. _Maybe we can get out now?_ Kouichi thought hopefully.

"I swear, they're in there!"

"Where's Kouji?" murmured a girl.

A second boy snorted, "Who cares? I'm just afraid of what _Kouichi'll_ do."

Kouichi walked over to the door and kicked it angrily as he yelled, "You know, Takuya, you're making me sound like Kouji!"

Izumi gasped, "So they _are_ in there! Kouichi! You better not have hurt Kako!"

_Actually, it was the other way around,_ Kouichi thought, glaring at the door angrily. His foot was throbbing.

There was a snicker from Takuya. "Didn't know you'd take my advice, Kouichi," he commented.

Kako shot Kouichi a puzzled look. She stood up and walked over to him. Standing on her tiptoes, she frowned at him, face to face as she asked, "Advice?"

"Nothing." Kouichi ignored the warmth that crept up his cheeks. "Open the door already."

"No key! Oh, looks like you'll be stuck with him forever, Kako!" Junpei sang.

Kouichi scowled. "It's on the floor. I dropped it."

"Well wha-huh? H-hey! WAH!"

Both Kouichi and Kako stared at the door as yells and thuds sounded through the hall. After a few seconds of hearing scurrying footsteps, Kako banged on the door with a fist. "Izumi? IZUMI!" she screamed.

"Duskmon!" Kouichi hissed. _You _owe_ me_!

Duskmon appeared by Kouichi. The two exchanged glares before Kouichi let out a nervous laugh. The digimon's eyes narrowed. But eventually, after minutes of gazing at Kouichi's sheepish face, Duskmon nodded and muttered, "But on one condition, because I _don't_ owe you."

"What?" Kouichi asked eagerly. _Anything. I'll do _anything!

A smirk spread on Duskmon's face, and Kouichi turned pale. "Either one, scan Seraphimon's fractal code, or two, open the locket. _Now_."

Kouichi turned to Kako. _What does Duskmon have against Seraphimon?_ Apologetically, he murmured, "It's the only way out, so I hope you don't mind."

Kako whirled around to face him, immediately spotting Duskmon. Her attention completely switched to the digimon. "What's he doing here?" she growled, eyes narrowing.

The boy sighed. While Duskmon and Kako began their glaring contest, he took out the locket. Kouichi wasn't sure as to exactly why Duskmon wanted him to open the locket, but he hoped that whatever it was, it wouldn't cause an intense feud between Duskmon and Kako to begin. He wasn't even sure of what to open it with. Kouichi gazed at the keyhole with a frown decorating his face. He took out Marise's key and slipped it into the side of the locket. _Here goes nothing_.

Kouichi turned the key in the lock. Drawing a breath Kouichi slid the key out and pocketed it. He exhaled sharply.

Finally, he opened the locket.

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"Why didn't you open the door first, Junpei?" Takuya screamed angrily.

Izumi looked behind her shoulder. Picking up her pace, she snapped, "Now really isn't the time! Just keep running!"

Grumbling, Takuya speeded up as well, now in front of Junpei. "You know," he muttered, "after all that running in the Digital World, you'd think we'd be able to outrun them."

"I'd prefer _digimon_ about now! Dead end! Tacky! DO SOMETHING!" Junpei bellowed, running ahead and banging on the wall in hopes that he would find a way to break it down.

Izumi whimpered and pulled herself closer to Takuya, clutching his arm. "Tell me you have a plan," she begged as they turned around. Takuya shook his head. She swallowed as she counted exactly how much of Kanaye's gang they were up against. "At least nine. And they're all upper classmen!" she wailed, swinging Takuya's arm around wildly.

"Great," the goggle boy muttered. "Where's Kouji when you need him?" He pushed Izumi back beside Junpei and looked at his shoes, thinking of the options he had.

"Takuya! Digivolve!"

Takuya looked up to find a grinning Agunimon in front of him. Startled, he took a step back. "D-digivolve?" he repeated, eyes widening. He slowly began to understand. He nodded in affirmation, grinning as well.

"Let's go!" the two yelled as Takuya yanked out his D-Tector.

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"A fractal code?" Kouichi uttered in confusion. Nothing seemed to make sense anymore. One fact was connected to another fact. And that fact was connected to several others. And those several others were connected to the first and several other facts. His brain hurt just thinking about it.

Duskmon averted his gaze from Kako to Kouichi. His eyes narrowed. "Not just any, fool."

The boy glared and snapped, "I'll tell you when you can call me a fool, thanks. What's so great about this?" Kako whimpered when Kouichi stuck the locket in front of Duskmon's face.

"It's story time," Duskmon muttered with a sigh. He called out, "Lowemon! You explain!"

Kouichi changed his furious gaze to a tired look. "Lowemon...?"

Lowemon let out a sigh as he appeared beside the first digimon. Before he could even raise a hand, Duskmon disappeared. Now without a distraction, he turned to Kouichi and explained, "Well, your fractal code was hanging out in the middle of nowhere, basically. Not in this world, not in the Digital World. They were in the dimension of...those things. Things like Cherubimon's experiments." He paused as Kouichi winced at the memory. "Yes, anyway, those _things_ took your code. Eventually, the code found its way here to Earth and Seraphimon decided where it should be sent."

Kouichi mouthed an "Oh," and Kako hit his arm. Baffled, he turned to her. When Kako pointed to the door, Kouichi looked away in embarrassment and muttered, "Knew that." Aloud, he asked, "Lowemon, can you get us out?"

The digimon nodded. "The door's actually unlocked. You have to turn the knob the _other_ way."

"You mean..." Kako stuttered, her face burning.

Lowemon laughed and Kouichi threw the door open. "Where's Takuya?" the boy growled as they all stepped out into the hall.

"First thing's first," Lowemon advised.

Eyes wide, Kako exclaimed, "Oh! Of course! Scan the data!"

"Wh-what? Why?" Kouichi asked.

"To complete your fractal code!" the other two chorused.

With a sigh, Kouichi took out his D-Tector. "Duskmon can call me a fool now," he mumbled, holding the locket to his D-Tector. Suddenly unsure, he dropped the hand holding the D-Tector to his side and asked, "Will this...actually complete my fractal code?"

"Yes," Lowemon answered briskly. Kouichi raised an eyebrow out of suspicion. Again, Lowemon repeated, slower, "Yes."

Kako poked Kouichi's shoulder repetitively, chanting, "Scan it, scan it, scan it..."

Kouichi drew a breath as he placed the D-Tector near the locket and scanned the data in the locket. For a few seconds, all was quiet.

Turning around, Kouichi's eyes widened as Duskmon appeared and practically ran towards him. He shut his eyes.

Nothing happened.

Kouichi opened his eyes to find Duskmon on the floor, groaning. Behind the boy, Kako and Lowemon were erupting into fits of laughter. "Dare I ask?"

"He tried possessing you," Lowemon started.

Kako continued, "But your fractal code pushed him out!"

The two laughed even harder. Kouichi shook his head and turned away from Duskmon, who had now recovered. "So," Kouichi murmured, "what happened to Takuya?"

"Chased by Kanaye's thugs," Duskmon reported. He slowly rose to his feet and brushed himself off.

The boy looked back at Duskmon. "Kanaye...has...'thugs?'" As Duskmon nodded, Kouichi made a face. "Well...well we've got digi-wait...he didn't digivolve?" screamed Kouichi. "Where did they go?"

Lowemon pointed to the direction Takuya, Izumi and Junpei had run off in. Kouichi dashed off, leaving the two digimon and Kako behind. With a smile, Kako turned to the two and bowed deeply. Then, standing straight, she told them, "I figure things'll be harder for them if we go with the plan, but that's okay! Besides, he deserves it. So! Tell Hideki, Shinya and Tomoki that if they screw up, their death date will be tomorrow."

Nodding, Lowemon turned to Duskmon and cleared his throat. Duskmon grumbled, but nevertheless disappeared. Lowemon turned back to Kako and murmured, "Then, shall we make sure he doesn't do something stupid?"

"No duh?" Kako laughed, already running.

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"Gah! Why don't I have any effect on them?" Agunimon screamed as he was flung back effortlessly.

"Takuya!"

"Kouichi!"

Kouichi ran up to the scuffle, D-Tector in hand. He quickly pocketed the locket and smiled. Chuckling, he looked behind him to find Lowemon and Kako a few feet away. "First as always, huh, Takuya?" he asked. "Lowemon! Spirit Evolution time!"

Kako ran up to Izumi, smiling broadly. The two cousins exchanged happy, but tired glances before bursting out into laughter. Junpei, who was standing on the other side of Izumi, stared at the two out of confusion. When he realized there was no chance they'd bother to explain, Junpei let out an exasperated sigh and returned his attention to the fight.

_Things should get more interesting now that Lowemon's joining the fight_, Junpei thought confidently. He completely ignored the fact that his knees were shaking and began to laugh. "Fear not girls!" he exclaimed. "Tacky Taffy and Crunchy'll take care of this!"

The girls' laughter died down. The edges of Izumi's mouth twitched, though she tried her best to maintain a small smile. "Tacky Taffy?" she repeated. "_Crunchy_?"

Kako shot the boy a death glare, stepping to the side as Lowemon flew back past her and hit the wall. "Give them better nicknames. Why the hell is it 'Crunchy?'" she demanded.

Letting out a nervous laugh, Junpei winced. _Oops_.

"How'd you get that nickname?" Kako asked again.

Izumi sighed, "Junpei..."

"Kouji!" Junpei answered automatically. "Well, partially. See, Takuya and I were talking and he overheard 'Kouichi' as 'Crunchy,' so...ehehe...hehe..."

Opening her mouth, Kako was about to begin an angry rant when she suddenly stopped. Looking around, the girl inquired, "W-wait...where _is_ Kouji anyway?"

"Takuya, don't tell me that's what I think it is!" they heard Kouichi yell.

Takuya and Kouichi stood back to back, surrounded by nine warping shadows. Kako's eyes widened. Biting her lip, she murmured, "So it's _that_ messed up? Then, Takuya, Kouichi! Digivolve and attack while they attempt to digivolve!" The last sentence she yelled at the top of her lungs.

"Digivolve? They can...d-" Izumi fell silent.

Junpei's face held a look of disbelief. His jaw was dropped, eyes wide. Shakily, he repeated, "Digivolve? You're kidding, right?" He took several steps back until he hit the wall.

"Lowemon...?" Kouichi murmured.

Lowemon sighed and shook his head. In an apologetic whisper, he told Kouichi, "Duskmon can do it, though."

Kouichi nodded and brought out his D-Tector. "DUSKMON!" he yelled. "Spirit Evolution!"

Everyone's jaw dropped as Kouichi digivolved into Duskmon. For at least a minute, all was silent. Not even the shadows dared to move. A dark laugh escaped Duskmon and Takuya jumped. A look of horror donned the goggle boy's face. Smiling, Duskmon waved a hand and darkness immediately surrounded the shadows before they left to reveal nine unconscious boys.

Duskmon then turned to Kako. "I'm back," was all he said.

Angrily, Kako clenched her hands into fists and glared at Duskmon. That was all that could be done now.

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A/N-

IT FEELS SOOO GOOD TO BE BACK! .:crying:.

Okay, not really crying, but anyway. I'm so happy! The ending wasn't a total flop! Chapter 41 wasn't well written, I agree, but chapter 40 wasn't a flop! I was worried it was. Or maybe it was. I think it was.

That's aside from the point! Thank you _everyone_ who reviewed. Thank you _everyone_ who read. Thank you _everyone_ who put up with my idiocy.

XP And since no one had any preferences of what story should go up, I think I'll do both. Priority to NTB3, however.

Thank You to everyone who reviewed at the end:

**WithBrokenWings, Princess if Darkness rules the universe, PrincessKaze, Catwarrior, GemmaniGirl, Lady Hikari-Yami, Winter's Light, Snowy Leopardess**

Review or Flame.


	2. Startling Truths

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Startling Truths

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Kouji stumbled away from the punch bowl, bumping into several people before he regained his balance. A shiver ran down his spine, but he couldn't place the feeling.

He couldn't see straight, either.

But it didn't matter. He was floating along...nice and warm in the waters.

_Kouichi, the lucky bastard, _he thought, fighting the urge to vomit. "G-gah, why'd I have to have twenty cups and _not_ pass out in the first five?" he muttered to himself. Kouji shouldered someone and mumbled an incoherent apology before attempting to push through the crowd again and head to his unknown destination. No sooner had he taken a step forward than he found himself yanked backwards. Angrily, he whirled around wildly, planning to lash out at whoever had grabbed his arm. Instead he saw a goggle-less Takuya. "Takuya?" he murmured in confusion. He looked around and found a worried Tomoki conversing with Takuya. _That's...not right. Takuya shouldn't be shorter than Tomoki! What is going on_?

"Kouji," Tomoki asked, "what did you do to yourself?"

"I...I go...got drunk," replied Kouji. His voice was slightly slurred.

It took Tomoki several minutes to process the facts. Then: "How many glasses?"

"'bout twenny."

'Takuya' let out a sigh. "Kouji, you shouldn't get drunk on your birthday. Oh, and I'll say happy birthday now. Happy birthday, Kouji!"

_His voice sounds different._ Kouji let out a laugh, nearly falling forward as he tripped. "Well thanks, Takuya. Where're we goin'?" asked the bandana-less boy, still laughing lightly.

'Takuya' and Tomoki exchanged a quiet conversation that ended with both boys erupting into a synchronized sigh. Tomoki then turned to the drunk boy and murmured, "Kouji, he's..."

"I'm not Takuya! I'm Shinya!" the younger boy snapped.

The ice broke. Kouji's eyes widened as he gasped for air. He rubbed his eyes and found a discontent Shinya glaring up at him. The oldest boy groaned, realizing what the earlier feeling was. "Where's Kouichi? Something's not right..." he whispered weakly.

Shinya and Tomoki exchanged glances before Shinya asked in a tentative voice, "You sober now?"

"I was drunk?" Kouji asked, confusion plain in his voice.

"It's a miracle! Kouji's drunk attitude lasts for mere minutes! He's invincible to the deadly poisons of alcohol!" the young boy sang, skipping ahead of the other two.

Tomoki continued to push Kouji. "Keep moving. They're _all_ this way. It would help if you could run..."

"Right," Kouji murmured, brushing Tomoki away. "Lead the way."

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Kako finally shut her eyes, ending the glaring contest between Duskmon and herself. "Alright. Name it."

Smirking, Duskmon replied, "Do whatever I ask for a week. You'll be...oh, well, my personal slave in a way."

"FINE!" hollered Kako. "Now get out of him!"

Duskmon withdrew his presence from Kouichi, causing the boy to fall onto his knees. Once more, Kouichi was physically drained. He stood up only to fall back down again. Groaning, he rolled onto his back and stuck a hand up. "Anyone?" he asked in a small voice.

Kako walked over to Kouichi, an all too sweet smile on her face. She looked down at the relieved Kouichi before kicking his side. "You made me _lose_ dammit! God, have better control of Duskmon! I thought you'd be able to control him after he possessed you last time! And he didn't possess you right away! I had faith in you! Weak! Unfocused! I swear, I'll make _Kouji_ train you if I have to!" she ranted.

Kouichi's hand flew down to clutch his side. With a sigh, he muttered, "See, I told you. One minute, we're civilized and talking, the next, you're yelling. Or hitting my arm. Or-"

"Are you ever paying attention?" Kako screamed. "If you can't control Duskmon, you're as good as dead!"

Everyone fell silent. Kouichi held up his hand again. This time, however, Takuya helped him up. Izumi and Junpei made their way around the unconscious bodies and all turned to Kako in askance. "Dead?" Takuya repeated, eyebrow raised.

"Ophanimon doesn't completely trust Duskmon. And I don't either!" Kako snapped childishly.

Duskmon snorted, "Oh, and I trust _you_ two so much. Now, starting from today, you'll address me as 'Master.'" After a pause, he added, "Slave."

"Duskmon," Kouichi murmured, shaking his head. "Okay, you two. Start explaining..."

"Well, see, Ol' Dusky here-" Kako started. When Duskmon cleared his throat, she muttered in annoyance, "It was a bet."

Takuya folded his arms. Tapping his foot impatiently, he exhaled sharply. "We know _that_! What about _them_?" He pointed to the unconscious boys on the floor.

Kako and Duskmon shrugged. Before Takuya could open his mouth again, Duskmon said, "Gizamon."

The goggle boy turned to Izumi, then Junpei. They, too, were just as confused. Exasperated, Kako sighed. "Izumi, drop the act now. I need help explaining."

Her cousin frowned. "Kako, maybe we should-" Izumi started. Kako stomped on Takuya's foot, emitting a howl from the boy. Izumi complied, "Fine."

"See, first of all, there's the shadow system," Kako murmured. "And then there's Lucemon being resurrected or reborn or something." She stopped, noticing the confused looks from everyone but Duskmon. "Er, okay, shadow system first..."

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"OH! I GET IT!" Takuya cheered, jumping up happily.

Everyone else was still seated, paying heed to Kako's every word.

"Right. And then there's Lucemon," Kako whispered. "See, I think he wanted to impersonate _Kouji_ at first..."

Kouichi's eyes widened. "What? Why?" he exclaimed.

Rolling her eyes, Kako was about to whack Kouichi's arm when Duskmon ordered, "Bow, slave."

The girl stopped and turned to Duskmon. Punching Kouichi's arm, she growled, "What?"

"Bow to the fool." Duskmon smirked as Kouichi's face reddened considerably.

"WHAT?"

Kako turned to the wincing Kouichi. She crossed her arms and glared back at Duskmon. "I'm explaining." She returned her attention to the circle. "So, anyway, something about the bandana being cool. He even sent Rai a letter-"

Izumi interrupted, "Seriously?"

"Well...yeah. Basically, he didn't want to bother with surprise attacks. It takes a while for a digimon to regain its strength after being reborn. He wanted us to know he was back. He knew it would take _us_ just as long to prepare. And so, Kouichi got to be the first with a digimon! Oh, but before that, for some odd reason, Duskmon appeared. But that makes no sense, because Lowemon is Duskmon purified and Duskmon is Lowemon corrupted..."

As Kako continued to talk, Kouichi realized something he hadn't before. If Duskmon couldn't exist because Lowemon did, then there must have been something in _him_ that caused this to happen. After all, he was their shadow.

"Kako," Kouichi murmured quietly, "is it possible that-uh-um, hi, Shinya."

Everyone turned to face Shinya, who stood beside his older brother, nodding. His eyes were shut and he seemed to be in a thinking pose. Behind him, Tomoki and Kouji were shaking their heads. Shinya opened his eyes. Putting on a Takuya-like grin, he waved. "Hey. What'd I miss? Kako and Kouichi making out? Or maybe brother dear here kissing Izumi like crazy? Oh, but there's unconscious weirdos that are tied up. Did I miss a fight?"

Takuya began to growl, "You didn't miss anything. Now _scram_."

Laughing, Shinya patted his older brother's shoulder in a reassuring manner. "No worries!" he declared. "Kouji's resistant!"

"SHADDUP!" Kouji thundered. Flushing red, he ran over and began pulling on the young boy's ears. "I _told_ you to keep _shut_."

"Owowowowow!" Shinya yelled in pain. "Takuya! Help!"

With a smile, Tomoki reminded the younger boy, "If you don't recall, he _did_ say he was the 'Kouji' type of brother."

Shinya screamed as Takuya began to tickle him. "No! Come on! If you don't-" The goggle boy's brother burst into fits of laughter, writhing as Kouji, too, began to tickle him.

Izumi did her best not to laugh, while Junpei went on ahead to giggle madly. Kouichi shook his head with a sigh.

"Um, Kouichi?" Kako whispered, tapping on his shoulder.

He turned to her, confused. "Huh?"

Kako swallowed her pride and bowed down quickly. "I feel like an idiot," she muttered, rising up.

Kouichi felt his cheeks warm up. Lifting a hand to his forehead, he let out a sigh. He didn't have a fever. _But then, why do I feel so sick?_ He turned to Takuya and Kouji and called out, "Hey! Duo of Destruction! Mind stopping? We ought to head back before those nine wake up. If they can digivolve, that doesn't really bode well for us. Besides, Shinya and Tomoki shouldn't be here."

Everyone stood up and began the walk. Kouichi quickly walked up to Kako and murmured, "You didn't have to. Bow, I mean."

Smiling, Kako shook her head. "Yeah, well...unfortunately, though he looks like a mere spirit, Duskmon _can_ make himself...well, I suppose you could say _real_. He could become physical, you know? So, it's best not to even test it. It's the same with the rest of the digimon. But they have to be careful. If they completely become physically real, that means everyone can see them. And...they wouldn't be able to hide. Well, Duskmon might, with all the shadows, but Agunimon and the rest couldn't simply walk through walls or anything."

"So they're like ghosts?" Kouichi asked.

She nodded. "In a way."

"Why could those nine...digivolve?"

Kako let out a sigh and rested her head on his shoulder for a second before standing up straight and murmuring, "See, about that...Lucemon was able to rip through the gateway from the Digital World to the Real World. And now, there's a whole bunch of tears that occasionally pop up. So, any digimon could hop through one of those windows, and due to the fact that you guys are the only ones with D-Tectors, their human shadows would automatically digivolve into the respective digimon."

"Oh..." Kouichi fell silent. Conversations from everyone else could be heard.

"So, Takuya, who did you go to the dance with?" Izumi asked, hugging the goggles boy's arm.

Takuya shivered. "Ai. But I lost her. Thank gods for the masquerade. It attracted a huge crowd, and with that mask...well, it was pretty easy to lose her!" the goggle boy laughed.

Kouichi let out a laughed, "The mask saved me, too." He smiled. "But the masquerade was pretty smart. Sheesh, I don't think I could've survived without either the crowd _or_ the mask."

"And the mask was great in place of my goggles," Takuya added, patting his goggles.

Kouichi paused. With a laugh, he added, "Oh, right, because all the _cool_ kids wear goggles."

Turning to him, the goggle boy insisted, "They will! One day!"

"Ooh, ooh, I want goggles! Come on, Takuya, lemme wear them sometime!" Shinya begged, jumping up and down in front of his brother.

Glaring at his little brother, Takuya snapped, "No. NOW MOVE IT, YOU LITTLE SHRIMP!"

"I'm not a shrimp! Kouichi says I'm krill!"

Izumi stifled a laugh. "That's even smaller," she told the boy.

Takuya turned to Kouichi. Shrugging, Kouichi replied, "He asked what was smaller. I answered plankton. He asked what was bigger than plankton. I answered krill."

"Besides, krill sounds cool," Shinya commented.

The goggle boy let out a sigh. He turned from one twin to the other. Turning to Tomoki, who was walking on the other side of him, Takuya asked, "What's up with Kouji?"

Tomoki looked around before whispering quietly, "He got drunk."

In a loud whisper, Shinya added, "And he's really alcohol resistant!"

"DRUNK?" Takuya repeated. His eyes were wide. Horrified, he turned to Kouji. "DRUNK? YOU GOT DRUNK?"

Kouji winced and slouched a bit more. "Shut up, dammit," he muttered, looking away from everyone.

Swallowing, Kako turned to Kouichi. _This...would be my fault,_ she thought, pulling away from Kouichi's side and placing a hand on the younger twin's shoulder. Quietly, she murmured, "Hey...Kouji..."

"Go away."

"Wait!" Kouichi suddenly blurted, a hand flying to his forehead. He blinked, squinted at the ground. Finally, he sighed in relief, and his hand dropped to his side. As if he remembered something, he murmured, "Oh, whatever. I already did say happy birthday. But, hey, Kouji. Happy birthday."

Kouji turned to his brother. "Shut. Up. I have half a mind to punch you right now."

"What...?"

"YOU LET ME GET DRUNK, DAMMIT!"

Kouichi scratched his head. Finally, he shook his head. "Hey," the older boy muttered, "You didn't get hurt. Although, that kinda _does_ ruin your reputation."

Angrily, Kouji screamed, "YOU THINK?"

"Sorry, sorry. But like Shinya said, you're pretty resistant. I promise not to let that happen again?" Kouichi looked at his brother from his peripheral vision, hoping his words would make him feel better, at least make him smile. Nothing. Kouji still had the same glum look on his face.

Letting out a sigh, Kouji shrugged Kako's hand off. "I'm heading home. Tomorrow's a busy day," he mumbled, breaking away from the rest of the group.

Kouichi frowned. Before he could open his mouth or say anything, Kouji interjected, "No. You stay here. Just...don't...do anything _you'll_ regret."

_WHAT IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?_ Kouichi's head screamed angrily while Kouji walked off. No one said a word.

"W-wait! Kouji!" Kako blurted, running up to the younger twin and pulling him back. "What...did you do to Kanaye?"

Kouji stopped and placed a hand on the side of his head. "I...I think I beat him up." Everyone's jaw dropped. Soon, Kouji found him surrounded by several amazed faces. Questions were thrown at him. Blinking, the boy stepped away and fell back onto the floor. "Uh...h-hey...do you mind giving me a little space?" he snapped. Kouji scowled as they continued to pester him.

"Come on, come on, how'd you do it?" Takuya asked before Izumi tried pushing him out of the way to ask her own question.

Junpei laughed, "Wish I could've seen it!"

Shinya jumped up and down. "Oh, oh, who's Kanaye?" Tomoki pulled him away, much to Kouji's relief.

Finally, Kouichi dragged them all back and walked up to Kouji. "Come on, we should all head home," he murmured, offering a hand.

Blinking, Kouji looked at the hand, not knowing what to do. _I don't deserve this,_ he panicked. He stood up and pushed Kouichi back. "Idiot," he muttered. "Why do you help me, _still_?"

Kouichi exhaled sharply after catching himself and stepped forward, punching his brother. "I told you, ten billion times. And now, I'm not answering that," he snapped. After seeing Kouji had fallen to the ground, he held out his hand again. "Do you plan on pushing me away _this_ time?"

Letting out a laugh, Kouji shook his head and accepted Kouichi's hand. Rubbing his jaw, he muttered, "You punch hard..."

"Slave," Duskmon hissed to Kako, "go kiss Kouji."

Kako's eyes widened. Angrily, she turned to Duskmon and growled, "What?"

"Go. Kiss. Kouji."

Everyone turned to Duskmon and the furious Kako.

"I REFUSE!"

"Then..." Duskmon drew out his blade and pointed it at Kako. Squealing, Kako nodded and scurried over to Kouji. Duskmon sneered, "Better make it on the lips."

Rolling her eyes, Kako walked up to Kouji. "Sorry, Kouichi," she muttered as she leaned up to kiss Kouji, but stopped halfway. Suddenly, she turned and pointed an accusing finger at Duskmon. "Oh, I see what you're doing! You're trying to ruin my relationship! FORGET IT! THE DEAL'S OFF!" Kako yelled angrily, slapping Kouji instead.

Kouichi slapped his forehead and held Kako back as she attempted to run over to Duskmon, threatening to poke all of his eyes out. "Kako...KAKO!" he yelled above her screaming.

Kako stopped and looked up at him. Confusion filled her eyes as she answered, "Hm? Oh, yes? W-wait..." Turning red, she pushed him away. "Why are you so _close_?"

"WHAT?" Kouichi exclaimed. "_Excuse me_, but you were trying to _murder_ Duskmon!"

She nodded. "True. But no one would have really cared."

His mouth was open, but nothing came out. Kouichi fell silent and looked away. "Uh, yeah. Let's go," he muttered, not bothering to wait for anyone else as he made his way out.

Confused, Kako turned to Izumi. "What did I do?" she asked. "Duskmon...?"

Duskmon snorted. "I believe," he told her, "it was the comment, 'But no one would have really cared.' As true as it is, he _does_ know slightly more than you in certain areas. And this is one area he completely knows. You couldn't begin to imagine it."

Guiltily, Kako turned to Kouji. "Um, sorry about slapping you."

Kouji let out a nervous laugh. Smiling, he commented, "On the same side as Kouichi's punch. You two make quite a couple." With that comment, he smiled slyly and added, "_Quite_ a couple. Much like _TAKUYA_ and Izumi."

"Oh shut up!" Izumi snapped, pulling away from her kiss with Takuya and glaring at Kouji.

Shinya burst out into laughter. "Thanks, Kouji!" he laughed, camera in hand as he ran away from his red faced brother.

Tomoki snatched the camera from Shinya and allowed the boy to hide behind him as Junpei held back Takuya. Nevertheless, Takuya managed to break free and lunged for his brother.

With a sigh, Shinya ran straight to Izumi and hid behind her. Startled, Izumi looked to Kako for help, but found her cousin and Kouji making their way out of the building. "Kako!" she exclaimed, running after the younger girl. "You still have my dress!"

Shinya screamed as Takuya managed to tackle him. Tomoki and Junpei exchanged unsure glances and headed to the two brothers to prevent any broken limbs.

-------------------------------------

"Later!" Kouji yelled, waving to everyone else as he opened the door. He sighed and found his mother and Kouichi on the couch, talking quietly to each other. "Mom...?"

Ms. Kimura looked up and beckoned her son over. "Kouji, I...well," she stuttered, looking to her other son for help.

Kouichi held up an envelope. Quietly, he mumbled, "Tickets. To Hawaii. For both of us."

"N-not Mom?"

"I have a job," Ms. Kimura whispered. "Anyway, you two discuss what you want to take." She stood up and smiled, then walked off.

Disgusted, Kouichi threw the envelope onto the table. Kouji fell onto the couch beside his brother, eyes wide in shock. "Wh-why...?"

"Read the letter. Oh, he's brilliant," sneered Kouichi, "'_I'd appreciate it if you and your brother could come over so we could discuss certain family matters_.' Obviously, he thinks _Mom_ isn't family."

Kouji sighed, "So you aren't going?"

"I don't know," Kouichi confessed after a pause. Even softer, he whispered, "Mom wants us to go, though."

"When is it scheduled for?"

"Spring break."

"Great..."

Kouichi stood up. "Kouji, you have to go. No matter what, you have to. By then, I _should_ be able to control Duskmon," he murmured, the last part mainly to himself.

The younger twin nodded. Standing up as well, he declared, "I'll sleep on it."

"Me too. Cut your hair."

"WHAT?"

"It's too long," Kouichi replied, heading to his room.

"Yeah? Well yours is too short!" Kouji snapped lamely. _Great comeback, bandana boy_.

Smiling, Kouichi tossed a bandana to his brother. "I _figured_ you'd lose the other one. Happy birthday," he told his brother. Kouichi walked into his room, not bothering to look back to see his brother's reaction.

Kouji caught the bandana with ease. He quickly examined it for any wet paint or anything else Kouichi could have done to embarrass him. Finding nothing, he sighed and was about to put it on when he noticed something on a corner of the bandana. To himself, he read, "'_Kouji. The most pathetic, but trustworthy twin on the Earth. Nevertheless, pathetic._' Oh, gee, thanks, Kouichi." He turned it around and found more writing. _'Never give up. Never look down. Lose this and you'll lose a lot more_.' Kouji shivered as he headed into his room. _Crazy twin. He'll get his presents tomorrow_.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Well, anyway, that was all over the place! Second chapter done! It's still short. Oh, if I happen to not update for over a week or something (but I have the third chapter done), you can guess it's either one of the following:

Homework, Writer's Block, Parents

Because honestly, this entire break has been spent on fanfics, and...I might get in trouble when it comes to school. .:sweatdrop:. Sorry. Haha...I'm an idiot. Anyway! NEXT CHAPTER YOU'LL LOVE, I'M SURE! (I mean, isn't reading someone's diary fun?)

I know that some of you might find the shadow theory a bit…stupid, or weird, but I assure you, there's more to it than that. So if you'd allow me the chance to get deeper into the story, you may find a lot of your questions answered, and _hopefully_ you'll come to accept the made up idea. If you don't, that's okay! Opinions, opinions, yes?

Thank you for the reviews-

**WithBrokenWings, Catwarrior, PrincessKaze, GemmaniGirl, Dragons Ark, ****Snowy Leopardess**

Review or Flame.


	3. Dive Into The Heart

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Dive Into The Heart

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Kouichi lay on his bed facing the ceiling, locket in one hand, key in the other. He couldn't stop thinking. He wanted to stop thinking, he wanted to fall asleep, but he couldn't. It all made perfect sense, but it wouldn't connect. In fact, Kouichi realized he was afraid it would connect.

The locket, the diary, Hideki, Kako, her mother, her stepfather, her unknown father...it made too much sense. The puzzle was put together and it fit so well. Kouichi sat up and took out the diary from under his pillow.

_One way to prove I'm wrong,_ he decided, opening the locket. It was empty. _There was something else, wasn't there?_ He frowned and shut the locket. He turned it around several times before he recalled Saito's words. '_This locket held a sort of decoder for the diary. But there were two parts to the locket, and something else was also put in there. The ink can be read in the dark once the diary is decoded._' _I should have known...the other side!_ Frantically, Kouichi slipped they key in the keyhole on the other side of the locket, quickly opening it. Inside lay a small glowing orb. Making sure it wouldn't fall, Kouichi placed the locket on his small light stand and opened the diary.

The answer had been in front of him all along. In the front cover was a small node, just large enough to fit the sphere. The boy gingerly picked up the sphere and placed it in the hole. The diary emitted a strong light. Kouichi shut his eyes, opening them just as the light died down.

He swallowed.

Kouichi flipped the page. Nothing. '_The ink can be read in the dark once the diary is decoded._' Smiling, Kouichi quickly shut the locket, placed it in a safe drawer of his desk, then turned off all of his lights. To make sure the room was completely dark, he closed the blinds to his window. "All right," he breathed, swallowing again, this time nervously. "Here goes nothing."

The book emitted a soft glow, this time, because of the text.

Kouichi nearly laughed. _Mr. Saito must have been close to Marise to know all he does,_ he thought, picking up the diary.

-------------------------------------

_From the diary of Marise Saito_:

_Welcome_, _intruder!_ _Whatever army you are from_, _I suppose it doesn't matter_. _After all_, _I_ am _dead_. _But that's that_. _Shall we continue?_

_Where to start?_ _Ah_, _yes_, _here_. _Seraphimon_. _Seraphimon_,_ yes_.

_I am Marise Saito_. _My age matters little_. _I am Seraphimon's shadow_. _One must wonder_, 'How is this? After all, this man died four years ago.' _Dear friend_, _or enemy_, _I am not dead_. _I couldn't die_. _How would you stand not watching your own children grow_? _No_, _I have talked to them_. _My ghostly form does not age_, _it is so simple to fool them_. _My son seems to have finally understood_. _But I know_...

_Harumi has made sure that Kako has no unbreakable connection to me as Hideki does_. _It's a depressing fact_, _but I accept it_. _I wonder_, _is this my fault?_ _It is said that should Ophanimon and Seraphimon's shadows ever marry_, _it is best they don't have children_, _true_. _But why not?_ _In the right hands_, _they will grow fine_. _I do believe_, _however_, _they would have been better off with the Orimoto's_. _Or is this my jealousy speaking_?

_That man_..._shows no love for either of them_. _My fault again_? _If Hideki has a hard time_, _he'll know exactly where to find me_. _Of course_, _he couldn't hurt me_, _so it's not such a big problem_. _I'm a ghost, anyway_.

_How to continue?_ _This is a lot harder than it seems_. _So_, _even now I am Seraphimon_. _His next shadow is Hideki_, _but it won't work that way_. _No_, _Hideki...Angemon...died_. _I'm afraid he won't be able to be Seraphimon's shadow_. _It will be four years_, _then...four years until the next shadow_.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi put down the diary, eyes wide. Kako had said Hideki had no shadow. _So, then, she doesn't know? He was Angemon? I wonder if_...

But now he could be certain. Kako was definitely Saito's daughter. Kouichi shut the diary and placed it under his bed. He lay back down on bed, and a smile appeared on his face. It would make sense soon, he knew. The feeling was strong. Whatever was going to happen would happen soon.

Despite the chaos, he felt right at home in the world.

-------------------------------------

Kouji awoke the next morning, earlier than usual. Despite the fact that he missed his warm bed, he got up and continued with his plans.

_Today's the day,_ he thought with a smile. _A late birthday bash. I hope Lowemon didn't spoil anything_.

He found a note stuck to the fridge.

'_Gone out for a walk_. _I ate breakfast_. _Meet you at school_.  
_Kouichi_.'

Kouji smiled. Everything was going as planned. He picked up the phone and dialed Takuya's number. "Hello? Takuya...?"

-------------------------------------

Kako rubbed her eyes, wishing she had gotten more sleep. The entire night, she had been tossing and turning. _I must've gotten an hour or two,_ she realized as she quickly got ready. She walked into the kitchen only to find Hideki making breakfast.

Turning to his sister, Hideki waved. "Have fun last night?" he asked. She beamed and nodded happily. Now smirking, Hideki asked, "Are you going to keep that hat on forever?"

"Hat?" Kako repeated dumbly.

"Yes, hat. If I _do_ remember correctly, that's _Kouichi's_ hat..."

The color drained from the girl's face. She placed both hands on her head. Sure enough, Kako was wearing his hat. _I don't remember the hat...when did this happen?_ Kako shut her eyes. Last night was nothing more than a blur to her. "OH!" the girl exclaimed. She smiled. "Yep. Now I remember. I opened the presents last night..."

"Awww...how cute. But it looks weird on you."

Angrily, Kako threw a crumpled paper at her brother's back. "Shaddup."

Hideki cackled and placed the plate of food in front of her. He walked back to pick up the crumpled paper and uncrumpled it. "Oh," he muttered. "This. Anyway, I'm subbing again today. We can drive if you want."

Excitedly, Kako looked up at her brother. "Really?" she asked.

The door bell rang and the two siblings fell silent. Hideki headed to the door and opened it. A smirk appeared on his face when he found Kouichi in front of him, sighing. "So, the new twerp. What can I do for you?"

"What? I'm back to the twerp?" Kouichi whined. At the sound of his voice, Kako jumped out of her seat and ran up beside Hideki.

"Yeah, you're dating Kako, aren't you?" Hideki asked in an accusing voice.

"HOW DO YOU KNOW?" Kako and Kouichi screamed in unison.

Rolling his eyes, Hideki replied, "Older brother instincts. Now, what?"

_Right,_ Kouichi drew a breath and murmured, "I kinda need to talk to you..."

A frown. "Me?" Hideki asked, pushing Kako away. "Why me?"

"BECAUSE. NOW GET OUT HERE."

"Sheesh, fine, fine..." Hideki grumbled, walking outside and shutting the door behind him. The young man scowled, "What gave _you_ the right to order me around?"

In response, Kouichi held up Marise's diary. "I assume you're familiar with this?" he asked softly.

Hideki said nothing. His eyes were glued to the diary. Finally, he cleared his throat and asked, "Where'd you get it?" An internal fight seemed to be raging through him.

Kouichi kept a tight grip on the book, noticing Hideki's shaking fists. "Mr. Saito. But first, tell me. Kako said you had no shadow."

Again, silence. A breeze blew. Hideki suddenly laughed. "I did, though. It should be one of the first things he wrote about," he murmured softly. "Hideki the failure. Hideki, the guy who just couldn't live up to his father's dreams. Something went wrong that day. I lost. I didn't have any faith in myself after that. And so, I wasn't given another shadow. That's what Kako knew me as. 'Hideki. The brother I have. Oh, and he doesn't have a shadow.' It's quite rare for one of our family to not have a shadow. Dad's still here because of me. He can't move on. He has to stay, because if he doesn't, Seraphimon will die." Hideki took the moment to draw a breath.

All the information flew through Kouichi's head. "What happened to Angemon?" His voice was barely a whisper.

A bitter laugh escaped Hideki. "Remember the royal pains? Well, I _promised_ Mom I'd protect those kids. Angemon just ended up stupidly attacking those two and dying in the process."

"But he was reborn!" insisted Kouichi. "Why couldn't you still be his shadow?" Kako's reason for wanting to get rid of the system suddenly made perfect sense. Hideki shrugged. Kouichi, once more, took his time to evaluate Hideki. He was a definite screw-up. Yet, all those mistakes seemed to make him as wise as he was. And, for the first time, Kouichi viewed Hideki as an actual man in contrast to the annoying child he considered him before. _He's older than he looks,_ Kouichi mused, staring thoughtfully at Kako's older brother.

Hideki noticed the look on Kouichi's face. Narrowing his eyes, he barked, "What, twerp? Something on my face?"

"No...you look old."

"I'M TWENTY-FIVE, OKAY? SHEESH! THAT ISN'T OLD!" Hideki screamed. "If that's it, I'm going back inside. Come in, because I don't want Kako getting a cold."

Kouichi nearly froze, but politely shook his head. "I should be heading back," he murmured as an excuse.

Hideki chuckled, "Nonsense, you have your backpack and everything!" When Kouichi didn't budge, he muttered, "Or I'll murder you _right_ now."

"Question. Does Kako know?"

"About...?"

"Marise."

"No."

Kouichi inclined his head slightly and walked in, wincing as he stepped over the threshold. To his surprise, however, the room had a familiar feel to it. He sighed softly and followed Hideki into the kitchen. "Kako," he muttered, taking a seat, "your brother is pure evil."

A devious smirk appeared on Kako's face. "He's going to be twenty-six soon," she whispered. "That's why he's so cranky." She burst out laughing when Hideki turned around and glared at her. "Hideki the old man!"

"I'm not that old yet-oh...great, I hurt my back," Hideki muttered, making a face and placing a hand on his back. "Help, help...I need a cane..."

Kako continued to laugh, clapping childishly as Hideki continued with his act. Kouichi sat back and watched in amusement, a small smile on his face.

'_Hey, Kako, look_! _I'm balancing spoons on my nose!_'

Kouichi shut his eyes and remembered all the times Hideki had done that before. The nostalgia was quickly brushed away. "Fifteen minutes and then we should leave," he reminded them after glancing at the clock.

Hideki snorted, "Bah, I'm driving!"

"Not drunk, I hope."

"Sorry, I don't get drunk in the morning. And Rai made me promise to not get drunk anymore."

"Oh! Kouji seriously got drunk last night?" Kako asked, suddenly concerned. "He looked fine to me. And I can't tell dream from reality right now."

Kouichi froze. "M-my hat..."

"Yeah, you gave it to me, so what?"

"It's...weird on you."

Snickering, Hideki declared, "HAH! I HAVE SUPPORT!"

Letting out a sigh, Kako stood up and walked past Kouichi, taking off the hat and placing it on his head. "Shush. I'm not you, you know."

Smiling slightly, Kouichi took off the hat and examined it. "No stains yet."

"I WOULDN'T STAIN IT!" she snapped, whirling around to kick him.

Kouichi ducked quickly and Kako's foot ended up skimming the top of the chair. He let out a sigh and crawled out from under the table. "Hideki, let me say this now. I pity you."

"Yeah, I pity myself, too," Hideki sniffed, taking the dishes off the table. "So, I should get there early, huh?"

Kouichi shrugged. He couldn't quite understand it, but when he was in this house...

He smiled to himself. A new feeling overwhelmed him. He didn't understand it now, but he could tell, just as he had understood the entire matter of the Digital World, he would soon understand that feeling. It was just a matter of time. For minutes, Kouichi sat there, realizing just how lucky he was to be _who_ he was. He ignored what was happening around him and instead took it all in. The giant puzzle lay in front of him, a pile of pieces behind him. He was holding just _another_ piece. There were so many pieces. But he would take his time. _And then_, he thought as they buckled up in the car, _then the puzzle will fall into place_.

-------------------------------------

"Gah...too hard! Kouji, think of something easy!" Takuya snapped. "Shinya will only do so much!"

Kouji dropped his books in his locker and slammed it shut. His mind wouldn't work properly. There was too much to think about. Sighing, he muttered, "Takuya, imagine yourself in my place. Suppose...your dad gave you and your twin tickets to visit him in Hawaii. Would you go?"

"HAWAII? HELL YES!" Takuya exclaimed gleefully.

"Even if your dad wanted to discuss...'family matters?'"

"HELL YES!" the goggle boy repeated, even more enthusiastic than before.

The bandana boy winced at the volume. _Why'd I ask him?_ Looking around, he found Izumi nearby. "Hey, Izumi!" he called out, walking over to her. "I need to ask you something."

Laughing, Takuya sang, "Hawaii!"

A sigh escaped Kouji. "If your dad gave you and your twins tickets to Hawaii to visit him, would you go?" Almost immediately, he regretted asking. He could practically see the stars in Izumi's eyes.

Izumi whirled around, clasping her hands together. She squealed. Then, shutting her eyes, the girl dreamily murmured, "H-Hawaii? Of course!"

_Is everyone going to act like this? Wait...Junpei wouldn't! I'll go ask him!_ Kouichi made his way to find the older boy, making sure Izumi and Takuya weren't following him. He found Junpei at his locker. "Junpei!"

Junpei whirled his head around. "Oh, Kouji. Sheesh, you don't look tired from last night at all."

Kouji grinned. He laughed slightly at the remark. Remembering his reason for searching for Junpei, Kouji asked before he could forget, "If your dad gave you and your twin tickets to visit him in Hawaii, would you go?"

There was a slight pause. Junpei's mouth hung open slightly. The only response Kouji got was, "Ha...Hawaii..."

Disgusted with everyone's response (and Junpei's drooling), Kouji stormed to Kouichi's locker, hoping his twin was already there. Sure enough, he was, along with Kako and Hideki. Suddenly, Kouji yelled, "Hey, Hideki! If your dad gave you and your twin tickets to Hawaii to visit him, would you go?" He didn't know why he asked. He just wanted an honest opinion.

Hideki, Kako and Kouichi turned to Kouji. Kako then turned to Kouichi, raising an eyebrow curiously, but the boy kept his eyes glued on his twin. Then, Hideki stroked his beardless chin thoughtfully. "Hawaii, eh?" he muttered.

"Well?"

"Well, first off, I'd successfully get rid of the twin!" Hideki laughed. At this point, Kouichi's eyes widened in horror. "Then, I'd bring along Rai!"

"_What_ about me?"

Hideki froze and turned his head, a sheepish smile on his face. "Eh...hi, Rai..." he mumbled weakly.

Swallowing, Kouichi declared, "If you in any way harm me, Kouji, I'm hiding all your video games!"

"I wouldn't do that." Kouji sulked over and rested his head on a locker, ignoring Hideki's screams of pain as Kako repeatedly kicked his shin while Ms. Kawai lectured him. "No one's taking the question seriously..."

"What question?" Ms. Kawai suddenly asked.

Kouichi sighed. The twins exchanged glances. Finally, Kouichi attempted to repeat the question, "If your dad gave you and your twin tickets to-great, it's a tongue twister."

Kouji tried, "If you and your twi-"

"Twin and you-"

"GAH!" the younger twin screamed, "HE'S TRYING TO RUIN MY LIFE!"

"Cut your hair!" Kouichi snapped.

Kouji glared. Covering his bandana, he scowled, "Leave my hair out of this!"

Snapping his fingers, Kouichi's face brightened. The boy turned to Ms. Kawai and told her, "Our dad gave us tickets to Hawaii so we could visit him. But...we don't know if we _really_ want to go. So, if you were in our place, what would you do?"

"Depends on the reason," his teacher replied.

Kouji let out a shaky breath. "Family reasons," he replied after a long pause.

"Well, I'd skip out. I find 'family reasons' utterly boring. Just you two, hm?"

Kouichi nodded.

"In that case," Rai advised, "if you _do_ choose to go, bring something that'll keep you awake along. Gameboys won't hurt."

The twins exchanged glances again. They turned to Rai, then back at each other.

"Is she nuts?" Kouji asked in a low whisper.

Kouichi shook his head. He murmured back, "Well, think about it. It's like Kako's attitude in an adult. Only, less violent."

The younger of the two laughed a little, "But nuts or not, she's cool. Hideki's got pretty good taste."

After successfully hitting Kouji's head, Kouichi turned back to the other three casually, only to find that the number of people grouped in front of them had grown.

"Woah, we're popular!" Kouji laughed. _Perfect. This should make the plan a _lot_ easier_.

"Ah...you wish," Kouichi muttered, pushing his way around everyone. _Why do they have to be grouped around my locker?_ He looked back, finding Kouji making large gestures while, Kouichi guessed, making up some story or another. A small smile appeared. He quickly hid it when Kanaye walked past.

The two exchanged cold glares. Kouichi's quickly faded, noticing the other boy's black eye. He did his best to not snicker, but miserably failed.

A certain understanding that had been passed through their glares quickly faded and Kanaye snarled, "What's so funny, Kimura? Believe me, your brother won't get away with this."

Covering his mouth, Kouichi replied, "Yes he will. Just you wait."

"_You'll_ be waiting."

"No, _you_ will!"

"I DON'T HAVE TIME TO ARGUE WITH YOU!" Kanaye burst, storming away with two other boys hastily running after him.

Kouichi burst into full out laughter. He couldn't stop. It was too funny. Not even _once_ had he seen anyone like Kanaye lose their cool so easily.

His laughter faded quickly with the ring of the bell. Looking over at Ms. Kawai, he saw her slightly nod at him. A groan escaped Kouichi's lips. _More torture in Ogata's classroom. Great_.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi wished it were night. He was eager to read more of Marise's diary, despite the fact that it made him more depressed. The hunger pangs were growing. _Breakfast was so long ago,_ he realized. _When did I wake up? Five?_ Kouichi glanced at the clock. _Nine eighteen. Great._ He turned to his twin and asked, "Still thinking about it?"

A small smile appeared on Kouji's face as he nodded. "Too many factors..."

"Yeah."

"Oh, brighten up, you two!" Kako snapped. "Uh...oh..." she suddenly muttered as Hideki called the class to attention. "Careful."

"Alright!" Hideki exclaimed, banging the ruler against the white board, "Because Rai'll kill me if we don't do anything useful-er...educational, actually, we're going to learn about probability! Hey, twerp, get up here!"

"I AM NOT A TWERP!" Kouji snapped in a deadly voice.

Kouichi winced. "Or...were you calling me?" he suddenly asked.

A frown appeared on Hideki's face. "Twerp two. Get up here."

The twins exchanged exasperated glares. "WHO'S TWERP TWO?" they snapped in sync.

Hideki pointed to Kouji, and the younger twin angrily stood up, storming over to the front. "What?" the boy snapped.

"Snappy today, are we? Okay! Next victim...Kana-what's-yer-name who picks on my sister!" announced Hideki as he pointed to Kanaye.

Kanaye stood up smoothly and walked over. A smirk was plastered on his face. It didn't take more than a split second for Kouichi to realize what he was going to do. Instinctively, he stood up, but sat down as soon as he noticed Kouji's face. _He better not screw up_, the older twin thought.

"And now," Hideki announced, walking around the room, "We'll see the probability of Kana-what's-his-name winning against Kouji in arm wrestling. Ready? Sit down and we'll start!" As he said this, Kanaye and Kouji took their seats on the opposite side of a cleared table.

Kouichi sat at the edge of his seat, swallowing as he watched the two boys exchange glares. Hideki placed a folded paper on his desk and continued to walk.

A few seconds later, Kouichi left the room.

"Now, why don't both of you take a-what, _twerp_?" Hideki growled in annoyance when Kouji raised his hands.

"Kendo's more of my game," Kouji replied, his eyes still formed in a glare concentrated at Kanaye. "And I'm sure Kanaye'd love to show off _his_ moves-"

"Twerp, this time, I can't agree. Although, I'd love the smashing of Kana-what's-"

"It's _Kanaye_," the second boy snapped, rising to his feet. "Sword matches-w-wait! Where'd _he_ go?" Kanaye suddenly asked, surprised to find Kouichi gone.

A small smile was hidden by Kouji. _Brilliant, Hideki. You're in top form today_.

Now looking quite cross, Hideki folded his arms across his chest. His eyes narrowed in on Kanaye and he growled, "Oh, troublemaker, are you? Arm wrestling is as far as I can get, so shut up and live with it! Now, Kouji, pretend you're Cloud."

"Wh-_what_?" sputtered the bandana boy. A glare from Hideki was enough for him to shut his mouth.

"Kana-_yey_, pretend you're the arm wrestling machine they have at the Gold Saucer that's very irksome. Whoever can define irksome in one word gets chocolate."

"ANNOYING! Like you," Kako yelled almost immediately. "Now hand over the chocolate!"

Hideki smirked. "I said _one_ word. 'ANNOYING! Like you' happens to be three."

_Where's Kouichi when you need him as back up_? Kako directed a glare at her brother but said nothing aloud.

Kouji and Kanaye situated themselves as soon as Kanaye sat back down. Their arms were merely inches apart, and their eyes pierced one another's. Kako could practically see a fire. Hideki pulled out a chocolate from his pocket and unwrapped it. Before popping it in his mouth, he said, "Okay, next word later. So, the probability that Cloud wins is slim to none, unless you have _ultra_ l33t skills like m-"

"L33T!" Kouji yelled, "LIKE ME!" As he said this, he slammed Kanaye's hand down.

Kanaye's eyes widened. Angrily he slammed Kouji's hand down, screaming, "I WASN'T READY!"

"Is that _always_ your excuse? And yet, you take advantage when _other_ people aren't ready!"

Hideki watched the two boys attempt to strangle each other. Much to his dislike, Kanaye seemed to be winning. Before he could do anything, however, Kouji grabbed a nearby umbrella. "Twerp, hold it-" Hideki paused. _Actually, if he beats up Kanaye-NO WAIT! They'll take him away._ With a sigh, Hideki grudgingly did the right thing.

Unfortunately, at the wrong time.

There was a flash of metal before both Kouji and Hideki fell to the floor, bleeding. Kouji's wound from that Sunday had opened up once more, and Hideki's left palm was bleeding. Angrily, Hideki stood up and kicked the sword out of Kanaye's hand before grabbing the boy by the collar with his undamaged hand.

"Sit. DOWN," growled Hideki, using all of his control so he wouldn't throw Kanaye as he placed him down. "Now, for this, the entire class can have a little fun. I expect at _least_ a ten-page essay from each of you by the end of today. I want it on the reason why we _don't_ bring weapons to school. Oh, Kouichi, you're back. You too," Hideki snapped.

Kouichi nodded and sat down. _Ten pages. Why we don't bring weapons to school...?_ His gaze went to Kanaye, then his brother. _Kouji's bleeding...?_ He was about to open his mouth when he saw Hideki's hand as the young man reached for Kanaye's fallen sword. A sigh escaped instead, and Kouichi returned to his paper.

-------------------------------------

"Well, well, so far only one person done?" Hideki asked good-naturedly as Kouichi placed the papers on the desk.

Kouichi shrugged on his way back to his desk and pulled out a book to read.

Hideki cleared his throat.

_Persistent...what does he want?_ Kouichi looked up.

"I believe you have unfinished business?" he asked Kouichi with a raised eyebrow. "Feel free to take the rest of your things, too. They'll be writing until the end of class."

The boy stood up, picked up his bag and walked over to Hideki. His eyes narrowed. "So do you," he muttered, tossing his first aid kit on the desk before walking out.

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A/N-

Chapters are shorter than usual, I know, but it's going to take some time. Connecting facts is hard, and I'm attempting to make this as connected as possible. Sometimes, though, you can't pull the ropes in yourself. You can try, but you'll only get a few fish. That's why I'm very grateful for readers as observant as all of you. .:grin:. Because that way, the little facts that I've missed are pointed out and I can further clarify the story!

So, thank you! And please, don't steal my fish analogy and claim it as your own. I actually like it.

.:Kouichi:. This chapter is Kouichi-checked and ready to go. Actually, let me double check…

Thank you for the reviews (and advice and comments and everything that helped me)-

**GemmaniGirl, Catwarrior, PrincessYami**, **Snowy Leopardess****, WithBrokenWings, ****Lady Hikari-Yami**

Please Review or Flame! Because reviews and flames are fun to read. After all, what other way do I figure out what you like to read? And I get to find out more about you!

Review or Flame.


	4. Mind Sinking Clarifications

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon. Plain and simple.

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Mind-Sinking Clarifications

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It only took minutes for Kouichi to reach the library. For the second time that day, Kouichi followed the instructions on the paper Hideki had given and sat down in a darkened, locked room of the library to read Marise's diary. And now, he could tell, Marise's 'ghost' was definitely close.

_From the diary of Marise Saito_:

_My, my_. _They grow up so fast_. _Hideki thinks I should continue to write_. 'Who cares if you're just a ghost?' _he says_. 'I want to know what happens!'

_That would be trivial, however_. _I'd have to claim_-

Kouichi put the book down. The rest of that sentence seemed to have disappeared. A frown appeared, but he continued to read.

_It seems they're moving_. _I know we should have sent Kako to the Orimoto's_. _She would have had such a fine time_..._although_..._I wonder if they'd appreciate it_. _Kako_ does _seem a bit wild_. _So_, _maybe it's for the best_. _After all_, _I'm not legally dead_. _Merely _'_missing_.' _But soon_, _they'll put me down as dead_. _With this new identity I can always take them in if something happens_.

The boy flipped the page.

_They never cease to amaze me_. _She talks to anyone_. _Unfortunately_, _it seems Hideki gets into a lot of trouble because of it_. _Ah_, _well_. _Hideki seems to be dating that girl_, _now_..._Rai_, _I believe_. _I wonder if he knows she's Ophanimon's shadow_...

With a sigh, Kouichi placed the book down. _Why is it about Kako and Hideki? That's all he talks about? Why can't he skip to the important part?_ Nevertheless, he continued to read.

_Ah, I should get to the important part_. _But I do say_,_ this is my diary_. _Maybe that's_ all_ it is_...

Kouichi's eyes widened.

_Then let's get to the point!_ _If your name is Kouichi Kimura_, _I must say_, _your initials are very amusing!_ _And your future is_, _too_. _Beware Kako's dangerous moods_. _If your name is Kanaye whose last name I care not for_, _kindly, please_, _go to_ hell.

_This just gets weirder by the second_, Kouichi realized, feeling his forehead. _No fever. So...how does he know my name_?

_Shall we do Kouichi's part first?_ _No?_ _Ah_, _very well_. _Kouichi_, _skip three pages_. _Kanaye_, _read on_.

Kouichi skipped three pages, all filled top to bottom in tiny writing. Not a space seemed to be left uncovered. _What a writer. Worse than my dreams diary. Which reminds me, I have to hide that from Kouji_...

_Ah_, _now Kouichi's part!_

The writing was much larger now.

_Simple_, _this is_. _Things you must remember_, _boy_:

_One_, _talk to Kako_._ How to explain this_..._? Ah_, _yes_, _in those videogames!_ _Pretend you're bugging a merchant for the free items he has!_ _If that made any sense_..._you see_, _Kako spills information like an overfilled tub does water_.

_Two_, _the closest to you may turn against you_. _Don't volunteer too much free information_.

_Don't tell Kako_,_ but Rai won't die_. _That is_, _if my readings are correct_. _Now ask a question_, _flip the page and the answer will be there!_ _Then flip back and ask some more questions!_ _Or stop reading for now_. _But please_, _ask at least one question!_

_How does that work?_ Kouichi wondered, flipping the page. To his surprise, there was a small scrawl of writing on the left page that read, '_My secret_.' Kouichi quickly flipped back a page, eyes wide. _It works? Okay, then, are my suspicions about Duskmon correct_?

His answer: '_Yes!_'

_Kanaye's sword! How did he get it?_ Kouichi suddenly wondered, remembering the weapon. He didn't realize before, but it seemed so strange, how he had it during class. A sword like that didn't seem like it could fit in a sleeve. Absentmindedly, Kouichi flipped the page.

'_Don't know, but be careful. Kanaye can deal a lot of damage with that metal stick of his. I'm sure he has his ways. You'll have to discover them by your own means._'

Swallowing, the boy flipped back. "Angemon said Ophanimon wasn't sure which children, but then...why did Mrs. Sakai ask Kako?" he whispered, slowly flipping the page.

_Why _did_ Harumi ask Kako?_ _Although_, I_ knew which children it would be_. _She could have asked me_ (_although I'm not always right_...). _Maybe it was simply opinion_, _or maybe she would only send people with matching descriptions_. _I'm not so sure myself_. _She was quite panicky at the time_. _Sometimes_, _Kako says things she doesn't quite know the full story about_ (_don't always believe her_). _And besides_, _Harumi does have a brilliant mind herself_. _Maybe that's why I married her_...

_Uh, right._ Kouichi shut the diary and placed it in his bag. Thoughts formed a violent storm in his head, along with questions to be answered. _Talk to Kako...? Those closest to me? So...I'll have to become distant? Now, of all times. Alone. Again...?_ He sighed. "Marise has one weird diary. Wish I had one just like it," muttered the boy, standing up. _Now...to head back to class and read a _regular_ book_.

-------------------------------------

"Back already?" Hideki commented. Walking into class, Kouichi calmly nodded. "Okay...uh..." Huffing, Hideki looked away and muttered, "Wanna help me?"

Kouichi shrugged. His eyes were glued to Hideki, who began looking around nervously. "Sure, I guess." _His hand...he didn't wrap it up_.

Clearing his throat, Hideki stood up and told the class, "Kouichi's in charge while I'm gone. Twerp two! Come with me before you bleed to death."

Kouji stood up and walked out of the classroom. One could tell just by the way he walked that he wasn't happy.

Soon, Kouichi was left alone with the rest of the class staring at him. Naturally, he stared back. Growing tired of at least twenty other faces staring at him, he muttered, "Keep working."

Kako immediately raised her hand and asked, "Can we get a break?"

"No," came the automatic response.

"But-"

"No."

"H-"

"No."

A snicker came from Kanaye. "Rejected his own girlfriend."

"Make that twenty pages, Kanaye," Kouichi returned smoothly, desperately trying to maintain control of his temper. "And the next person to open their mouth and talk will get thirty pages."

That being said, the class soon fell silent. Only the furious scribblings of pencil on paper could be heard.

Kouichi could practically feel the hatred towards him emanate around the room. Was this what Marise had been talking about? _Maybe not. I bet I'm just getting a headache. The class isn't close to me, and he _did_ say 'those closest,_' the boy thought dismissively. _No...now how do I talk to her about it, first of all? Hideki would kill me, though, wouldn't he?_ His thoughts quickly dissipated when Naoko pushed her papers towards him. "Oh, done?" murmured the boy, counting the pages.

Naoko nodded and murmured, "You know I lied about liking Kanaye, right? Well, partially. He's hot, but not my type."

"Not really...er-um, I figured it out later, after Kako told me about Fujitaka," he murmured in return. _Or was it Izumi...? Maybe the alcohol Kouji drank hit my brain instead_.

"You should ask her out on a date, you know."

"A date?" Kouichi's face went blank. _A date? Brilliant! I could talk to her then!_ "Thanks," whispered the boy. "That's pretty smart! I wonder why I didn't think of it myself..."

Naoko gave him a strange look before she returned to her seat. Kouichi, however, pain no attention. He was too preoccupied with figuring out how to ask Kako out on a date.

_Ask Kako out on a date. Ask Kako out on a date. When? Where? HOW?_ Kouichi shivered. _Think, Kouichi, think! I know! I'll sleep on it. Now...whether to go to Hawaii or not...?_ Sitting back in the chair, Kouichi sighed. _So many factors...how to eliminate them...?_ He sighed once more. Although part of Kouichi wanted to visit his father, part of him wanted nothing more than to just give up on the man. Going to Hawaii felt like betraying his mother. _Fine_, Kouichi decided,_ if Kouji goes, I won't. If he doesn't, I will. It works_.

"Kouichi. Kouichi. Kouichi...ichi...kou...ou...chi...hello?" Kako whispered, getting frustrated by the minute. She stopped waving her hands in front of his face and let them drop to her side. _The moment I have to turn in my papers, he spaces out._ Drawing a breath, Kako was about to yell his name when she was pushed out of the way. "H-hey...who-?" Glaring, Kako snapped, "What's your problem, Kanaye?"

"Kimura, stop daydreaming," Kanaye snapped quietly instead. "Twenty pages, like you asked."

The boy looked up at Kanaye, then took the papers into his hands and counted them. Now ignoring Kanaye's presence, he turned to Kako. "You done, too?"

"I was finished _before_ him," Kako informed him.

"O-oh..." Kouichi felt his cheeks burn. _Definitely not a good time to ask._ "Sorry," he apologized, taking her papers and counting them.

Kako turned to Kanaye and cleared her throat. Much to her dismay, Kanaye still stood there, eyes glued on Kouichi in a piercing glare that was ignored. "Beat it, black eye," growled Kako. When Kanaye turned to her, she folded her arms. "Well?"

A smirk made Kako gulp. "But what?" Kanaye taunted, taking a step towards her.

Instinctively, Kako ran behind the desk, grabbing a white board eraser and wishing they had a chalkboard instead. "Bug off!" she yelled, squealing as soon as Kanaye reached for his sword.

Kouichi quickly pushed the sword out of reach, allowing it to drop on the floor. "Sit. Down. _BOTH_ of you," he ordered.

"You'd make a great teacher," Kako muttered, dropping the white board eraser in Kouichi's hand and slumping back to her seat.

_Teacher? No way_, thought the boy, making a face. After seeing Kanaye had returned to his seat, Kouichi stood up and picked the sword up. He placed it back on the desk and sat down in the chair to return to his thoughts. Something was bugging him in the back of his mind, but he couldn't figure out exactly what.

_Marise's diary...maybe that could explain what Ophanimon or Rai can't. But...Kako's explanations seem to make no sense when I read the diary. Shadow system, okay, but...they conflict in other ways. Why does he say Rai won't die? And...why does Kako say she will? And...why is he...a...a _'_ghost?_' _Why...why couldn't someone else take over for him? Or...this makes no sense anymore_. Miserably, Kouichi let out a sigh and sank back even further in his seat. His eyes shot open at the sound of a slam. _Huh?_ "Oh, Fujitaka."

"Stay away from Naoko," the boy growled, practically stomping back to his desk.

Kouichi counted the papers and fell back in the seat again. _Why does he hate me? Oh, wait...all that because I went to the dance with Naoko? We didn't even talk...much. Yeah...was I like that to Kouji? I should apologize_...

"Twerp one!"

Kouichi jumped in his seat. Looking up, he found Hideki in front of him and Kouji making his way in. Realization hit Kouichi at last. _I could have used this time to break into Ogata's computer! Wait...w-where's the computer?_ Puzzled, Kouichi ignored Hideki and looked around the table.

No computer.

Sighing, he looked up at Hideki, whose hand was now wrapped. "Yes?"

"You're done."

"Okay," Kouichi muttered as he slumped back to his own seat. _I should have asked him for advice on how to ask Kako out. Yeah, I'll do that during lunch._ As if on cue, the bell to lunch rang. Kouichi was about to get out of his seat when Hideki barked, "You'll be staying in for lunch. But eat, or I'll murder you."

"Uh, what if they're buying lunch, genius?" Kako snapped.

"Is anyone?" Hideki asked smoothly. No one answered. "Good. And no talking allowed, either."

_Why couldn't he permanently sub for Ogata?_ Kouichi let out a sigh. _So much for asking_...

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"Oh great. What's next?" Kouji muttered as soon as they got out of class. "Aliens coming to steal my videogames?"

Takuya grin. "No, but you lose one hundred dollars."

_Oh...shoot. Completely forgot_, Kouji thought. The bandana boy winced and formed an all too friendly smile. Coughing, he asked, "What do you mean, I lose?"

"You. Lose."

Letting out a nervous laugh as his composure was quickly fading, Kouji repeated impatiently, "Whaddya mean I lose?"

"You. Lose. The deal was no being serious, worried, utterly annoyed with our being stupid-"

"'_Stupid?_' You're downright imbecilic. And what's wrong with being annoyed or grumpy?" barked Kouji. His eyes narrowed and he growled, "I'm not any of those!"

"_...at a major degree_. And you are now!" Takuya laughed gleefully. "And since you lost..."

Red faced, the bandana boy muttered something.

"What was that?" asked Takuya, smile slowly fading.

"I SAID YOU CAN'T STAND SHINYA AND YOU EXPECT ME TO STAND YOU."

"I-I can stand Shinya!"

Now smirking, Kouji replied, "Well I bet you can't get annoyed at Shinya for this entire day."

"YOU'RE ON! I SO CAN! Just you wait!"

"I win, _you_ have to dress up in that penguin suit."

"And if I win, I get to go to Hawaii for you!"

Kouji paused. "Oh, yeah, Kouichi about that," he murmured to his approaching twin. "I've decided to go."

The older boy nodded. "Okay," murmured Kouichi in return. "Then if Takuya wins, he can take my ticket. I've decided I'm not going if you are. But if you aren't, then...well..." Noticing Kouji's downcast look, he added, "But not because I have anything against you. Just because that way one of us can keep an eye on things at home, you know."

"Yeah..." Kouji offered a small smile. "Soooo...you doing anything after school?" he asked, clearing his throat to change the mood.

Much to Kouji's relief, the twin boy nodded. "Yep."

He did his best to hide the excitement in his voice. Instead, he cleared his throat again and inquired, "What and how long?"

"I've got...er...things to do until seven, about. Hey, Takuya?" Kouichi suddenly asked, turning to the other boy.

The goggle boy sent Kouichi a questioning look. "Yeah?"

Swallowing, Kouichi wiped his hands on the side of his jacket. "Er, uh...what's a good restaurant to eat at?" he asked, trying to keep his voice steady. _Don't falter now, Kouichi. Not now_..._  
_  
Takuya grinned. "Easy! The new one that opened just a few stores down by the arcade. Izumi and I went there last night. Man, it was cool. Why?"

Dead silence followed. Kouichi quickly turned away from the two and began to walk away. "Curiosity," he answered, picking up the pace. "Later."

Utterly baffled, Takuya and Kouji exchanged glances.

"Well..." Takuya started.

Kouji shot him a glare and snapped, "Back to work! We have a job to finish before seven!"

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Kouichi winced as he pushed open the doors of Saito's bookstore. Kako's words from the night before suddenly hit him. '_If you can't control Duskmon, you're as good as dead!_'

_Why is that?_ Kouichi thought with a sigh. _I need to ask her...and soon_. "Hey Mr. Saito," he murmured, walking up to the from desk. He frowned, seeing the man's eyes closed. Kouichi only noticed it now, but Mr. Saito seemed a lot older than he remembered. _Is he okay? Well, Kanaye did keep bugging him_. "Uh, Mr. Saito, sir?"

Mr. Saito's eyes opened. The boy nearly jumped. "Yes. I'll close up. You know what to do. Head to the back, now," he instructed softly.

With a quick exchange of nods, the two quickly moved to work. As practiced many times before, Mr. Saito quickly turned off all the lights, shut all the blinds, locked the door and put up his 'closed' sign.

In the meantime, Kouichi went to the back, Mr. Saito's extra keys in hand, and opened the training room. Just as he brought out his sword from his D-Tector, Mr. Saito walked in.

"What are we doing today?" Kouichi asked eagerly. He carefully placed the sword in the corner of the room.

An amused smile formed on Mr. Saito's face. "Well, we'll have to go back to training, I'm afraid. Very _intense_ training." He suppressed a laugh as he saw Kouichi's determined look. "So, while I make tea-"

"I practice with the sword?"

"Nope."

"I...practice with something else?"

Mr. Saito shook his head and corrected, "You'll be meditating, Kouichi. Concentrate, eyes closed. Sit down now. Don't let anything interrupt you. Good." The man nodded, satisfied as Kouichi followed his instructions, although reluctantly. "Now, I'll be back soon to get you."

Kouichi let out a sigh as soon as he heard the door shut. _What now? He's got to be kidding,_ the boy thought desperately. _But...then again, I wasn't concentrating after I digivolved to Duskmon, was I? That feeling was there._ Eyes sill closed, Kouichi allowed a sad smile. _So...this'll help. But how do I do this? ...I'm stuck. Shoot_.

_Kouichi_.

_Eh? Duskmon_?

The voice snapped, _Don't open your eyes, idiot!_

_Lowemon. _Kouichi drew a breath. He didn't understand it, but it felt calming to have both digimon by his side. Only having one seemed...chaotic, in a way. _Why are you here?_

_To lecture you_, came Lowemon's reply.

_Okay. Enlighten me_.

_When you digivolve into me_, _you realize you have complete control_, _yes? This is because I allow it_, _and unless you do something stupid_, _it will stay as such_. _However_, _when you become Duskmon_...

"I lose control," Kouichi whispered softly.

_No talking! Your mental abilities must grow before you work on improving any physical ones_. _Now_,_ Duskmon won't just relinquish his post just like that! In order to force the control from him and gain it for yourself_, _you must be able to resist anything he tries_. _For example_, _were he to bake a cake and bring it in the room_, _you'd have to not be hungry_.

_Thanks_. _Now I'm hungry,_ Kouichi grumbled.

_Quiet! No thinking! Concentrate_. _There's cake in the room_.

..._hm_. _What would Kouji say? Food!_

_QUIET!_ thundered Lowemon.

_You know_, _I'm doing this to annoy you. I mean_, _what's the point? I can concentrate just fine! _

No you can't. _Admit it, Kouichi_. _You can't concentrate_. _Kako was right_, _you'll never be able to control him_, _and you'll probably wind up dead_.

_I can! You're doubting me!_ Kouichi thought furiously.

Lowemon laughed, _You couldn't even wrestle the control out of me_.

The boy was obviously incensed. _Wanna bet?_

_What_, _that you'll end up like Kanaye after you make all those bets? After last night_, _your brain has been going haywire_. _Don't tell me it's because of what happened with Kako_.

_Bet, bet, bet,_ Kouichi's mind chanted, ignoring all Lowemon had said.

Lowemon growled, _SILENCE!_

..._is silver_. _Fine_, _I'll stop_. _I bet Duskmon thinks you're chicken_. _Yes, I'm stopping_._  
_  
_Good_. _Now_, _understand we don't know Duskmon's true intentions_. _With you_, _he can cause a lot of damage_, _even kill you_. _You need to make sure you are mentally ready_...

'_Mentally ready_...' Kouichi drew another breath. The words echoed through his mind. '_Mentally ready_...'

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"Kouichi. Kouichi, wake up."

"Hmm...wh-wha...?" Kouichi's eyes opened, slowly widening as he realized who was in front of him. "U-uh...wh...WHA-?"

Mr. Saito chuckled, "Nice to see you awake. Lesson not passed. We'll try again later."

Standing up, Kouichi let out a sigh. _What's wrong with me? When did I revert back to little Kouichi? Or...or...GAH, I'M CONFUSED! Poor Lowemon. Must've been hard to put up with me. I ought to apologize_.

"You should go home now," the man commented. "It's almost eight."

"R-right..." Embarrassed, Kouichi bowed low. "Um...sorry about that..."

"No worries, no worries!" Mr. Saito laughed in a light and assuring way, "Tomorrow, then?"

Kouichi stood up, a determined look on his face. Almost immediately, he exclaimed, "Yes!" _To redeem myself,_ he realized. _I need to...redeem myself. How pathetic_.

Another laugh. "Go home, Kouichi. Oh, and give Hideki this for me, would you?" Mr. Saito withdrew an envelope from his sleeve and handed it to a blinking Kouichi, adding a polite, "Thank you."

Nodding, Kouichi made his way to the front of the store.

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A/N-

I took forever to update (It was a REALLY long time…). I'm sorry (and it's short, too). One, I didn't have the chapter typed up. Two, I was having problems getting to the computer. Three...you're all too nice. It's too awesome. Thank you all! I love the reviews. They're life brightening. And the guesses you make are cool. The questions are, too, because they actually help me clarify my fanfic ten billion-fold.

A bit of my life, to you: I was looking through one of my fanfics I wrote during the summer (I thought someone opened it). I opened my main folder and saw that every folder in the list had been opened (I swear, I don't do that). I went back to the fanfic, read through, made slight corrections in grammar and spelling...I got to the last chapter and found that it wasn't cut off where it should be. I swear, I ended with Izumi tickling Takuya. The scene wasn't there. That's my life so far. Anyway, that fic has a lot of themes related to NTB 2&3, so don't expect it to be posted soon (or at all) without major revision. Now to get back to the model of the Old Globe theater I should be making…

Thank you for your reviews and PMs and whatnot that I loved so much:

PrincessYami, Catwarrior, Snowy Leopardess, WithBrokenWings, Ruki Minamoto, GemmaniGirl, The Light's Refrain, Winter's Light

Review or Flame!


	5. Birthday Bash

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Birthday Bash

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Soon enough, Kouichi found himself outside the bookstore. "Uh...what is this?" he wondered aloud while gazing at the envelope. "Whatever. Might as well get it to Hideki first thing." He only took a step when someone called out his name. Surprised, Kouichi stopped, nearly falling to the side for lack of balance. _No, not now,_ he thought miserably, shutting his eyes. _Run?_

"Kouichi...j-just...wait," Kako breathed, staggering up to him. "Y-you know, I...I ran around for at least four hours trying to look for you..."

"Oh...y-wait, what? Why?" asked the boy, alarmed. Guilt flowed through him easily. "Sorry..."

Kako smiled. "You know, you look awfully confused right now," she told him. As Kouichi was about to open his mouth, Kako suddenly burst into laughter. Now even more confused and less guilty, Kouichi closed his mouth. Kako's laughter slowly subsided. "Sorry," she murmured, "I just realized something funny."

He broke into a smile of his own and questioned, "Yeah? What?"

"Something for me to know. You don't need to."

_Evasive. Darn._ Kouichi handed her the letter. "I don't suppose you could give this to your brother?"

"Oh, hold on to it if it's for Hideki," she replied, handing it back. "Anyway, I went over to your house-"

"What? Why?"

"Hold on! Let me explain!" laughed the girl. "Anyway, I went over to your house after I dropped my things off, and I happened to be wearing your hat..."

"Kouji saw?"

"Yep."

"He asked you to take a part in helping him ruin my hat?"

Kako laughed, "How'd you guess?"

"Oh...one wonders," replied Kouichi casually. "What's he up to, anyway?" Not getting a response, he frowned and narrowed his eyes. "Kako?"

Grabbing a hold of his hand, Kako began to yank him in the direction opposite of where he was going. "Wh-what? Kako!" he yelled, "I don't wanna go home!" No response, still. An impatient growl escaped him, "Kako..."

"Shush," she murmured, pushing him forward once they reached his house. "In, now." Kouichi didn't move, but instead turned around and crossed his arms. "NOW," she snapped, recognizing the stubborn look on his face.

Letting out a defeated sigh, Kouichi obliged. He opened the door and almost immediately, his jaw fell.

A loud, "SURPRISE!" and the faces of many of his classmates knocked Kouichi out of his senses.

Kouichi turned around and attempted to make his way around Kako. She grabbed one of his ears and pulled it, commanding, "Get. In. Now."

Grabbing onto her hand, Kouichi let out a squeak. "Get it off, get it off, I know I'm not dreaming!" he hissed, trying to pry off her hand.

Kako let go and pushed him inside, a small smile on her face. "See," she told the younger twin, who happened to be sitting on the couch. "I'm _much_ more convincing than you are."

"But...but you probably threatened to kill him," Junpei pointed out, shivering.

"I'm still more convincing!"

"WHO CARES? Shut up and go surprise him even more," Kouji snapped, pushing the two towards his brother.

Making his way over to the bandana boy, Takuya muttered, "How many people did you invite?"

"Everyone who wanted to come," was the response.

"How many people is that?"

Kouji shrugged. "About twenty. Okay, more like twice that many. Or is it more...?" He trailed off and scratched the back of his head. "Doesn't matter. Where's Hideki?"

"He and Rai are almost finished with the present," reported the other boy.

A smile appeared. Kouji stood up. He pushed his way into the kitchen, dragging Takuya along with him. Immediately, he dropped down under the table and whispered, "Enjoy the surprise, Kouichi?"

Kouichi nearly jumped up and hit his head. Turning around, he replied furiously, "What's the big deal? Our birthday was yesterday!"

"Yeah, but so was the dance. And Valentine's Day. Having fun?"

"No," came the rude reply.

"Lighten up," Kouji snapped, whacking his brother's head lightly. "This is your birthday present. Enjoy it."

"WHAT ABOUT THE MONEY FOR THE WINDOW?"

_Shoot, I keep forgetting,_ Kouji thought, letting out a nervous laugh. "You know, this is emotionally better..."

"NO. IT. ISN'T."

"Well...Takuya has something to say! Don't you, Takuya?"

About to shake his head, Takuya quickly nodded, noticing the deadly glare Kouji shot towards him. "Uh...I haven't gotten annoyed at Shinya yet?"

Kouichi rose an eyebrow. "Oh? I have news of my own. I've officially embarrassing myself by being stupid and now I'm being embarrassed by Kouji."

"Hey, the embarrassment hasn't begun."

"What?" Kouichi turned to his brother, a furious look on his face. "What do you have planned _now_? Painting my room in rainbow colors? Oh, simply _going_ through my room? Or are you going to-"

Plugging his ears, Kouji yelled, "Stop giving me ideas! Takuya's bet did too much damage as it is. No, no...it's not _that_ embarrassing. Actually...it's not embarrassing at all."

"W-what is it?" The older boy bit his lip. _Please don't make me regret this-wait…what bet? I'll ask him later. Just don't make me regret this_.

"Takuya, are they ready?" Kouji whispered. Takuya stood up and looked around, then nodded. "Great." The boy rose to his feet. "We're gonna sing!"

A look of horror appeared. "Kouji...please don't."

"Oh, come on! It'll be fun! You'll really like it!"

"Well, it _is_ more like arguing while singing," Takuya admitted.

Kouichi scooted further under the table. "When you're done," he told them, "I'll hopefully be alive in this very spot."

At this moment, Kouji chuckled, "Guess who else is joining us?"

"Who?" asked the goggle boy.

"Welcome and...well, welcome!" came Hideki's voice.

The room fell silent.

"Kouji, Takuya, Junpei and Shinya, please make your way towards the T.V."

"SHINYA?" Takuya screamed. "I mean...er...right, Shinya."

_He really wants to win, doesn't he?_ Kouichi smiled slightly and crawled out from under the table. He pulled up a seat and sat down. _Wow, it's crowded,_ he realized, seeing the crowd of people blocking his view of the living room. _Remember to go back under in the end, Kouichi_.

Hideki continued as the four made their way up. "Of course, all of you should know whose house this is! Let's take some time to embarrass the birthday boys!"

Kouichi's face fell. _NO_...

Unfortunately, things weren't going his way today.

"Here's a little slideshow. Aww...cute pics of them, don't you think? And there's Kouichi playing with...his food? Um, moving on! Oh, there's Kouji glaring. How...very...okay, okay, I'm moving on, stop pushing me!"

Standing up, Kouichi caught sight of Kako stomping on her brother's foot. _So that's what it was._ He let out a sigh. _This stinks_.

"Having fun, Kouichi?"

"No..." mumbled the boy, slouching a bit. Almost immediately, he sat up, shocked. "What are you doing here, Ms. Kawai?"

She smiled and pulled up a chair beside him. "You know Kako and Hideki. They forced me along. Of course," she added, "I would have come anyway."

Kouichi returned his attention to the front and murmured, "I'm not sure whether to be relieved or scared." The slideshow was almost finished, much to his relief.

"...oh, and we tried getting his face, but he turned around too quick. And there's-oops, why is that one in there?" Hideki scratched his head in confusion.

Shinya yelled, "TAKUYA AND IZUMI, SITTING IN A TR-"

The goggle boy's voice almost immediately followed, "SHUT UP, YOU STUPID TWERP!"

"And Takuya loses!" Kouji announced, sounding somewhat relieved.

_Ouch. Here comes the penguin suit,_ thought Kouichi, feeling a sting of pity for Takuya. _Now what do I do with that ticket to Hawaii? Oh, I know! I think, anyway_...

"Now, you see Kouji, Takuya, Junpei and Shinya at the front!" Hideki yelled. "Two of these lucky foo-er...lucky, very lucky boys...get to sing...a random song I dug up in Kouji's room!"

The response from Kouji was deadly. "Just _what_ were you doing in my room?" he growled.

Hideki completely ignored him and continued, "And it just happens to have certain elements that make me choose...Takuya and Kouji, please take the microphone away!"

There was a pause and then applause. A bubbling feeling in the pit of his stomach told Kouichi it wasn't any good.

"Oh, this song!" Kouji commented thoughtfully. "Okay, okay, we'll sing it, _won't_ we, Takuya?"

Takuya grumbled, "Right..." After hearing the sound of what seemed like crumpling paper, Takuya exclaimed, "Oh! _This_ song! Right, right, we will _definitely_ sing it!"

"I wanna sing it," Shinya whined, sulking over to Kouichi with Junpei right behind him. "Kouichi, your brother-in-law is mean..."

Kouichi choked, "'_Brother-in-law_?' What are you talking about?" His cheeks reddened visibly and he slowly slipped off his chair and retreated under the table. "I _have_ no brother-in-law! Unless Kouji's married..."

"Fine, fine," the young boy muttered. A bright smile lit up his face as he corrected, "I mean your _future_ brother-in-law!"

"_Shinya,_" Junpei murmured warningly, "what did we say about ticking people off?"

Shinya let out a huff. "But Takuya in Hawaii would have been boring! Besides, he might've cheated on Izumi!"

The older boy stopped to ponder that last fact for a moment. Finally, nodding, he acquiesced, "You're right."

"Shinya, stop assuming people are going to get married...or cheat on others...or..." Kouichi stopped. _What else would he do?_

"Or sing off-tune?" offered the younger boy.

"Or sing off-tu-THEY'RE GOING TO DO _THAT_ SONG?" hollered Kouichi, jumping out from under the table.

No one paid any attention to him. They were all too busy listening to Kouji. "As you know," the bandana boy said, "it's really a party for Kouichi! You know, the infuriating goody-two-shoes-"

_I am not!_ Aloud, Kouichi hissed, "I am not!"

"Yeah, well, he's my brother. So I guess I can excuse his behavior. Even if he wasn't, there's a lot of things to excuse his behavior! Point is...we've got a little present! Takuya? You ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be. Music!"

The music started. Kouichi covered his face. _Not this song..._

In his most off-tune voice, Takuya began:

'_Shining and burning!  
Ore wa honoo Omae wa hikari  
Kasaneae Muteki no kagayaki  
Shining and burning!  
Aratanaru furontia  
Mugen o sora ni egake!_'

_Tone deaf,_ Kouichi thought, wincing as Kouji began, equally as bad.

'_Burning and shining!  
Ore wa hikari Omae wa honoo  
Te ni irero Mirai no kirameki  
Burning and shining!  
Owarinaki furontia  
Mugen o sora e nagero!_'

_Off beat, Kouji. _He caught a few words of a random conversation they began to have, obviously purposely muffled. _What's possible? Wait-_

"SPIRIT EVOLUTION!" the two yelled before they both began to sing once more:

'_Shining and burning!  
Ore wa honoo Omae wa hikari  
Kasanereba Muteki no kagayaki  
Shining and burning!  
Aratanaru furontia  
Mugen o sora ni egake!_'

As they finished, Kouji yelled, "Thank you, thank you! It takes _skill_ to sing off-tune, I'll have you know!"

Clearing his throat, Shinya was about to say something, but Kouichi quickly clamped a hand over his mouth. Turning to Junpei, he hissed, "Where's Tomoki?"

Junpei shrugged. "I think...I dunno."

"Tomoki said he couldn't come because he's meeting up with Teppei and Katsuharu today," Shinya whispered.

_Those two? Wow, they still keep in touch._ Kouichi shut his eyes and drew a breath, unaware as all eyes turned to him. _Must be nice, having friends like that_.

"...but everyone knows it was really Kouichi who sang at the dance yesterday, so it's all fair, right?"

Kouichi's eyes shot open. "W-wah...? What are we talking about?"

"Y-you sang yesterday?" Naoko asked, scooting further away.

The color drained from his face. _Lie time._ Standing up and stretching, Kouichi yawned. He rubbed his eyes and murmured, "Wow, look at the time! I didn't even start on homework!"

"You don't _have_ homework, Kouichi," Rai informed him.

A sour look overcame his face. "W-well...I'm tired."

"Liar," Hideki supplied.

Kouji walked over and handed the microphone to his brother. "And now, let's all beg for an encore of yesterday's performance!" he yelled.

"NO WAY," Kouichi growled. "You can play famous singer from here, Kouji. Not me."

Kouji sighed, "Oh, come on!"

"I...I'm going for a walk, later, bye. If you leave before I come back, which you all will, please know I am very sorry I could not stay and chat for so long!" Kouichi spat, storming out the door.

Scratching his head, Kouji commented, "These parties were a lot easier when I wasn't struggling to figure out whether I should keep serious or not. The bet gave me a great cover around idiots."

"I'll go get him," Kako volunteered, dashing out the door.

"Ms. Kimura," Hideki announced, "I'm sorry if your son comes back bruised."

Kouji broke into a smile at this. _The only thing that'll be bruised is his 'I'm allergic to girls,' lie_.

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Kouichi let out a sigh. _Today, I've embarrassed myself more times than in my entire life. Or have I?_ He let out a groan and rubbed the back of his head. "How stupid am I? And how long did Kouji work on that party? If it was just the regular few..."

"Kouichi, wait _up!_"

"NO." Furiously, Kouichi picked up his pace.

"Kouichi Kimura, if you don't stop, I'm going to torment you forever!"

For some reason, Kouichi stopped. He couldn't move. All running had done was buy him some time. And it wasn't enough. Kouichi turned around, eyes glued onto Kako. "Kako, I need to ask you something."

"The sunset's pretty, but the sunrise was prettier," commented the girl, gazing at the sky as she walked up to him. "What do _you_ think?"

He snorted, "Obvious. The sunset today is far prettier than the sunrise. Although, the sunrise today was far better than many others we've had, it hardly can rank up to this sunset."

"But sunsets are depressing!" she argued. "The sunrises are soft, and they don't look as if they're going to murder someone!"

"Who are we talking about?" joked the boy, "Duskmon or a sunset?"

Confused, she gazed at him before breaking out into laughter. "But the sunrises are prettier!" she insisted.

"Sunsets."

"Sunrises!"

"Sunsets win by a major landslide."

"Sunrises are prettier!"

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah!"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah!"

"Yeah, well you're prettier than both! Er-..."

The two stood, blinking at each other before turning around as they blushed. Stiffly turning back, Kouichi asked softly, "Join me in my pathetic walk?"

Tilting her head to the side, Kako slowly allowed her senses to calm down before nodding. "Sure," she whispered, slowly walking up to him as he began to walk around. "So...what did you want to ask me?" A small smile formed on her lips

_Brilliant. Great, um, lie...?_ "Oh, could you remind me to give the letter to Hideki if I forget?" he quickly said.

Smiling, Kako nodded. Then, she murmured, "But that's not what you were going to ask me."

"Yes I was."

"No, now tell me what you were going to really ask me."

"Kako, that was what I was going to ask you."

She shook her head. "Is not."

He looked away. Drawing a breath, Kouichi whispered, "I...er...Kako...?"

"Yes?"

"Would you...like to go out sometime?" _Stupid, stupid, _stupid Kouichi's brain growled as the two came to a halt.

Much to his surprise, a soft smile appeared on her face. Turning to him, Kako murmured, "I'd love to."

_She'd love to?_ After taking several minutes to register what she had said, Kouichi let out a small laugh. "That's great," he whispered, unconsciously moving towards her. His hands came to grasp her hands. Kako fell silent and took a step closer.

"Kouichi, you want cake now?"

Both Kako and Kouichi turned to the owner of the voice. Shinya stood there, grinning and pointing to a nearby trashcan. The two turned to the trashcan, then back at each other. After pushing each other away, they made their way to the trashcan and found Takuya behind it, furiously trying to figure out how the camera worked while letting out a curse every second or two.

"Does photography run in your family, Takuya?" Kouichi asked, his voice suddenly icy.

Swallowing, Takuya hid the camera behind his back and looked up. Nervously, he laughed, "H-hi...what's up? Chance meeting, huh?"

His humor was slowly dying, but Kouichi allowed a sarcastic reply, "Oh, yes, didn't you see? It was in the stars today."

_Damn little brother, blowing my cover,_ Takuya thought, rising to his feet. "Er, I better be on my way! Kouji wanted me to tell you that everyone left," he said hastily, grabbing his brother's arm and dragging him off. "So, I'll see you tomorrow in school! Say 'bye,' Shinya."

"OW, BYE, OW!" Shinya screamed, howling louder as his brother tightened his grip. "Takuya..."

Kouichi and Kako turned back to each other. "Uh...uhm," Kako murmured, "Oh! You need to give Hideki that letter..."

"R-right!" Kouichi exclaimed.

"Yeah..."

"Okay..."

The two looked down, blushing. "L-let's go, then," Kouichi blurted, heading back to his house.

"Hey! Wait up!" _Insensitive...yet sensitive. I'll never figure him up,_ Kako realized as she ran to catch up to him.

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"What did you two do?" Hideki thundered as soon as they stepped inside. "No making out, right?"

"Stop freaking out," Kako snapped, reddening as Hideki continued the possibilities.

Ms. Kimura sat in the kitchen, conversing with Rai. Kouichi headed straight for the couch, plopping down and shutting his eyes. "Kouji, why are you playing my game?" he murmured.

"Umm...gosh, how'd you know it was yours?" Kouji muttered back, no hint of emotion in his voice.

A snort escaped the older twin. "Maybe the record time?"

"Well hey, I want to snowboard. Tough."

"Hm. Thanks."

"I didn't give you your present yet. Why are you thanking me?"

"I don't want it."

Silence fell between the twins.

"Oh shut up! Like that would happen!" Kako snapped.

Hideki growled, "Well it could and it better not!"

"Sick mind!"

"Little brat!"

"Old pervert!"

"Twerp!"

"Gaah! How dare you!"

"Oh, you mean he has an 'A?' That's marvelous!" Kouichi heard his mother exclaim.

Rai laughed, "Isn't it? He has quite a bright mind. Kouji, however, failed a math test or two, but I'm sure he's just hiding his true talent..."

The twins let out sighs. Opening his eyes, Kouichi smiled. "Well it was an interesting day. I actually asked."

"What?" Kouji turned to his twin with an eyebrow raised.

"Oh, I asked Kako out. Sort of. Well...not really. It's a start."

A sly smile appeared on Kouji's face. "Oh. I see. Keep me updated."

_Huh?_ Kouichi allowed a small smile and shrugged.

Hideki pushed his sister away and poked Kouichi's head. "Hey. I need to talk to you," the young man muttered.

"I didn't do it," was the automatic reply, but Kouichi followed Hideki outside nevertheless. He watched as Hideki gazed down at his still bandaged hand. "What is it?"

Quietly, Hideki slipped his uninjured hand into his pocket. "You know Kanaye's sword? Have you been wondering exactly how he got it out during class?" Hideki muttered, leaning against the closed front door.

_I wouldn't do that_, Kouichi thought, frowning. He nodded. "Yeah. Oh, before I forget, Mr. Saito wanted me to give this to you!" Taking out the letter, Kouichi handed it to Hideki.

Hideki took it, quickly scanned the paper, then pocketed it. "Stop making me get off track. Anyway, Kanaye's sword. After class, it disappeared."

It took every bit of self-restraint Kouichi had so he wouldn't scream. Drawing a breath and letting it out, he repeated, "Disappeared?"

"Yes. I need a clear memory, here. I don't recall anything, because I thought I'd get a chance to examine after class. Did you notice any fancy ornaments on it?"

"No...not really."

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Hideki pushed off the door. "I just don't see. Unless he's using the shadow system...he could be...but..." He turned to Kouichi. "Anyway, Saito tells me you're slacking in training. So, you're going to have to train under me."

"WHAT?"

A smirk appeared on Hideki's face. "We'll start tomorrow after school. I don't go easy."

Kouichi watched as Hideki called Kako out. _Meh...just one day of slacking, and then I get transferred,_ he thought dismally. He waved to Kako as she and her brother left, soon followed by Rai. _This is why I should have just kept _'_little Kouichi_'_ hidden_.

It was too late now.

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A/N-

My brother got this Beyblades game. It's okay. I think he gets all the plot while I do all the levels. Speaking of videogames, I ought to play more often. Over holiday break, I snowboarded like crazy, raced chocobos like crazy, and spent a full hour and forty-five minutes to get Omnislash the day before school started. Although, adding up all the other attempts, more like four hours. I'm allergic to dogs. Well, dog fur, which stinks, because I like dogs. First cats, then dogs, then fish, then birds, but still, dogs. Which reminds me, if Kouji's dog was a bit smaller, it would definitely be cute. The way it looks is like a blown up version of what it should be. I remember it being really huge, anyway. I need to look through my cassettes to check.

My arms really hurt from doing push-ups. Why am I ranting about my life? I'm sorry. Let's take this time to laugh at Kouichi, who must now train under Hideki. Actually, that's pretty awesome. I wish I could! Oh, and the song is from 'Get The Biggest Fire!' You can check the translations at animelyrics (dot) com.

Thank you for the reviews! And I'm sorry for updating late last time:

**PrincessYami, WithBrokenWings, Snowy Leopardess, GemmaniGirl, Lady Hikari-Yami, Catwarrior**

Review or Flame.


	6. Between Ordeals

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Between Ordeals: Challenge

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_Kouichi opened his eyes_. _A flood of green met his eyes_. What...? Wait...this is...

_The Village of Beginnings lay before his eyes as sparkling and majestic as Kouichi remembered it_. _The bushes seemed filled with more digi-eggs than ever_. _Overall, the place seemed more complete_. _Slowly, the boy made his way closer to the center_. _There was no sign of anything but the eggs_.

"_Swanmon?_" _he called out_, _carefully checking inside her tree home_.

_No Swanmon_. _No babies_, _crying or sleeping_.

_A twinge of unexplainable emotion spread throughout Kouichi_. _He felt numb_. Where is everyone?_ Kouichi ran out, looking around the area_. _It was still green; everything seemed to be where it should be_. _Yet just as he took another step forward, a strange gleam caught his eyes_.

_The feeling grew stronger as Kouichi followed the glow and stumbled upon a bush that was truly overflowing with digi-eggs_. _Each egg seemed to carry a familiar sign and color that allowed Kouichi to relate them to each one of the legendary warriors easily_.

_However, there were no digi-eggs for Duskmon or Lowemon_. _He couldn't find any_. _Kouichi wasn't sure whether to panic or be happy_.

_The bush emitted a stronger shine than before_. _Slowly, he saw a few eggs fade away_. Those are the digimon that came to the real world, _realized the boy_.

_Just as Kouichi was about to step closer to the bush, it was enveloped in light_. _He let out a yell and jumped back, eyes widening in horror at the scene unfolding before him_. _The bright white light slowly stained with gray and eventually turned into a murky black radiance_. _A wave of fear washed over Kouichi as he was instantly reminded of Cherubimon's experiments_.

_The shadow light eventually cleared to reveal the bush to be empty of all but two digi-eggs_. _One egg was pure black, the other, pure white_. That can't be Kouji and myself, _thought the boy with a frown_. _He slowly approached the bush_. _He was only a foot away_. _Kouichi reached out with a hand reaching out to touch the eggs and_-

Kouichi sat up in bed, one arm outstretched to grab the digi-eggs in his dream. "Wh-" _The village...gone? A dream,_ he realized, getting out of bed. A quick flash at the clock settled the question of whether to get ready for school or not.

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_A beautiful sunset was painted across the sky, casting a golden glow across the room_. _It was a day Kouichi would have loved to be outside_. _And so, he gazed longingly out the window for as long as possible_. _Sadly, he was in prison_. Hideki's _version of prison_. _What was Hideki's version or torture_, _you ask?_ _Playing videogames_, Kouichi continued to narrate further in his head, stating all the reasons why it would be so much better to go outside rather than be stuck playing videogames. He stared distastefully at the controller he held in his hand. _Why videogames? I thought Hideki was smart!_

"Keep going, twerp one! You can't _pause_ in the middle of a battle! Oh, great, you're dead," Hideki snapped, glaring at him. "Stop slacking! Do you realize how important this is to your training?"

"NO."

Letting out an impatient sigh, Hideki turned around. "Keep going. If you don't beat this boss before I come back, I'm restarting your game."

Kouichi made a face at Hideki's retreating figure. He simply couldn't understand how playing videogames would help his training. And yet, Hideki insisted...

-FLASHBACK-

_Hideki frowned_. "_This is how it starts_. _Step one-wait_..._did you finish your homework?_" _he suddenly asked_.

_Kouichi nodded_, _staring at Hideki strangely_.

_His new mentor grinned and announced_, "_Now let's move on to step two!_ _We shall teach you how to game excessively_."

"_THAT'S MY TRAINING?_" _screamed Kouichi_.

"_Well_..._yeah_," _Hideki said_, _returning the strange look_. "_If you can't beat anything in a videogame_, _do you expect to beat anything in real life?_"

-END FLASHBACK-

He _still_ failed to see the point. "God, this is stupid," muttered the boy. He wanted actual training. In the back of his mind, he saw more point in meditating than playing videogames. At least meditating could somehow improve his mental abilities while videogames...

_How are videogames supposed to help?_ Angrily, Kouichi pressed harder on the buttons, causing Sora to swing at an enemy heartless. _Especially _Kingdom Hearts. _I mean, what's the point of the game? Sheesh...okay, so the beginning looks flashy. But 'keyblade?' And why are these controls so-_ At this point, Kouichi inhaled deeply, doing his best to stay calm. He was positive his brother (or any other boy, for that matter) would love to be in his place.

"The best this could do is improve my hand-eye coordination. What's that got to do with anything?" A sigh escaped him. Kouichi placed the controller down and stood up, walking over to the window and leaning on the windowsill. Both eyes slipped shut and the fading warmth of the sun touched his features with a golden tint. A door opened and his eyes shot open at the sound.

Footsteps sounded. Reluctantly, Kouichi tore his gaze away from the sunset and turned around. "I'm go-Kako," he murmured in surprise. He had originally thought Hideki had come back.

A small smile was on her face. It grew wider as she asked, "What are you doing here?" The girl looked delighted, as if he had come just to meet her.

Kouichi suddenly felt awkward. "I...er...well, see..."

"Are you _done_?" Hideki's voice cut into the conversation.

As if a blade had run through him, Kouichi winced and looked down at his feet. A dark chuckle was emitted from the young man. Kouichi's heart beat faster as he heard Hideki's heavy footsteps grow closer. _What now? I told you not to slack, Kouichi,_ he thought, shutting his eyes.

Hideki stopped right in front of Kouichi. "Look. Up," he commanded sharply. The reluctance was obvious, but Kouichi slowly did so, a look of despise clear on his face. Softly, Hideki hissed, "If you think this will get you anywhere, it won't. You want to learn how to use a sword? Well you're going to have to earn that right. And I suggest you start by doing whatever I tell you to do, no matter how idiotic it sounds."

"H-Hideki!" Kako exclaimed, "Stop being so mean!"

"Kako, shut up."

Kouichi returned to the controller and stared at the TV screen. "Why?" he suddenly asked, turning to Hideki. "What's the point of playing some stupid videogame?"

"Maybe when you _finish_ I'll tell you," growled his new mentor. "Kako, do your homework!"

Sticking her tongue out at her brother, Kako yelled childishly, "I'll do what I want!" Smiling widely, she walked over and sat down by Kouichi.

"KAKO!" Hideki thundered. When she didn't budge, he let loose a string of curses and stormed away.

Letting out a sigh, Kako brushed her hair back. She smiled softly and murmured, "Hideki's training is never straightforward. You have to get used to it. And though you couldn't begin to imagine, where a sword is involved, videogames help a _lot_."

"No it _doesn't_."

"Well, analogies are easier to come up with, believe me," Kako returned, leaning back on her palms. "So when the time comes to learn some really important moves, it's easier to say, 'Do a _vortex_,' or 'It's like _guard_.' See what I mean?" she asked, turning her head to face him.

He didn't want to give in. Angrily pressing down on a button, he snapped, "No."

Pushing off her palms, Kako grabbed the controller from him. "Listen," she snapped, "I don't know who the hell you think you are, but I prefer to have Kouichi back."

Kouichi lay down, hands laced together behind his head. A small smile appeared as he replied, "This is Kouichi Kimura. Please leave a message after the beep. _Beep_."

Growling, Kako reached out one hand to choke him. Kouichi grabbed it out of instinct and accidentally managed to pulled her down on top of him. The two stared at each other before Kako sat up and smoothed herself off. Clearing her throat, she turned to him and handed back the controller. "Do what Hideki says. Believe me, you'll get a lot further," she simply told him.

The boy turned away as he turned a deep shade of crimson. _Calm down_, he told his frazzled nerves. _Calm down_. When Kouichi turned back to Kako, he looked as normal as he had before the incident. "Where was I?" he muttered. Kouichi turned to Kako and asked, "That's all great, but tell me, how do I get off the island?"

"You got the keyblade?" she asked with a newly formed smile.

"Yeah..."

He _thought_ the smile looked too sweet. It faded almost instantly. "THEN GO TO THE DAMN DOOR! GOD, HOW DID YOU GET THROUGH THE ISLAND? DIDN'T YOU GO TO THE SECRET PLACE? DIDN'T YOU SEE THE SCENE THERE? WHERE YOU SLEEPING THROUGH THE ENTIRE THING?" screeched the girl, continuing to yell at him for being ignorant as well as other things he didn't care much for.

_So it was an important scene? It isn't my fault I don't really care for the stupid cut-scenes,_ he thought glumly while he had Sora head to the door. And yet as the next cut-scene took place, he knew that wasn't true. For what Kouichi knew he feared most was losing what he loved the most, just as he had it in his arms. He feared it would fade as Kairi did, but not in Sora's arms. He was afraid it would fade in his own.

It wasn't that Kouichi didn't care for cut-scenes, he realized, _It's because I'm afraid of the truth they can hold_.

------------------------------------

Kouichi had spent an hour longer at the Sakai's house and (with Kako's help) eventually moved on to Traverse Town. However, Hideki was still annoyed and refused to talk to either Kako or Kouichi whatsoever. The two did homework together until dinner time, when Kouichi politely declined Kako's offer to stay for dinner.

"Oh come on!" Kako insisted. "Hideki's not making dinner, I am!"

Smiling uneasily, he replied, "That's okay. I'm...busy." Her face fell. Swallowing, Kouichi continued, "But, um...it would be great if...next week, we could...you know, um, go somewhere?"

Kako turned around, but Kouichi swore he saw a blush. "N-next week? I...uh..."

"O-or tomorrow..."

"T-tomorrow...?"

_How lame do I sound?_ Kouichi swallowed, unable to bear the anticipation. To his surprise, Kako turned around, smiling. "I'd love to!" she replied.

"Tomorrow?" he repeated, eyes widening.

Quickly, she answered, "If you're free."

"I'm free, are you free?"

"I'm free."

"Okay...tomorrow."

"When?"

Dumbly, he repeated, "Tomorrow." Noticing the strange look she sent him, Kouichi reddened. "Um, h-how about...er...after school?"

"Okay."

"Okay."

"Oh...okay..."

"Okay..."

Silence befell them. Kouichi could hear his heart racing, but for what reason, he couldn't name. It felt strange, standing there like an idiot and staring at Kako, but he did so nevertheless. They were inches apart. Nothing felt right. It was just as he opened his mouth that Hideki walked in on them, glaring coldly at Kouichi. Politely inclining his head in acknowledgement, Kouichi murmured, "Hideki."

"Twerp," was the only response he got.

The boy turned around and opened the front door. "Later," he murmured.

Hideki snapped, "I expect you come tomorrow, even if you _do_ plan to take Kako out. At the rate you're going at, I'll be long gone while you still attempt to beat the game."

Kouichi's hand tightened considerably on the doorknob. _Control,_ he told himself, relaxing slightly. "We'll see," he murmured, "and I assure you, I'll beat it quite soon."

He may have sounded brave, but Kouichi was having an internal panic.

------------------------------------

When he got home, the very first thing Kouichi did after taking off his shoes was plopping down on the couch and shutting his eyes. Kouji was right next to him, once more playing his file of _Final Fantasy VII_, but he didn't care at the least. He had enough of videogames for an entire lifetime, and he didn't especially want to see another one, even if it was his own.

"Had a rough time?" Kouji guessed, his eyes still glued to the TV.

Kouichi groaned, "Rough doesn't cut it. I never want to open my eyes again."

A small chuckle came from Kouji. The younger twin tore his gaze away from the TV and put the controller down. "You know," he commented, "I never gave you your gift."

"You said that yesterday. And I told you-"

Softly, Kouji's voice cut in, "I know, I know. You-"

"-don't want it," finished the older boy. Opening his eyes, he asked, "What would be a good place to take Kako out?"

"Where Takuya said," Kouji murmured, "that place a few stores down from the arcade. Tomoki went there with Katsuharu and Teppei yesterday."

Kouichi glanced up at the ceiling and exhaled sharply. "They're in town..." he murmured, more of a question than a statement.

"Yep."

"How long?"

Kouji shrugged and leaned back, stretching his arms up. His eyes were still glued to Kouichi. Clearing his throat, he asked, "So, you're taking her out."

"Yeah."

"When?"

The older twin narrowed his eyes on his brother. The question seemed innocent enough. He even looked as if it was a normal honest question. But something seemed to be bugging Kouichi. "Tomorrow," he answered slowly, "after school..."

Kouji mentally noted that down along with calling everyone else up. "Oh, yeah, anyway, pres-"

"I don't want it."

"It's not a joke, dammit."

"I know it isn't."

"No you don't!" Kouji snapped, resisting the urge to punch his brother or harm him in any other way. The boy stood up and glared down at his brother. "And don't you dare open it now. Not until you really need to," he warned as he handed to the wrapped package to his brother.

Kouichi reluctantly accepted the package. He got up and walked to his room, shutting the door behind him. The very first thing he did was place the present on his desk. The next thing he did was fall down on his bed. _Food...doesn't matter_, decided Kouichi as he shut his eyes. There was something he couldn't explain, something that made too much sense inside of him. He didn't want it. _Why...? Why does it still exist? I don't understand. It should be gone_...

He wanted to know why. He _needed_ to know why.

If there was one thing Kouichi could be sure of, it was that he wanted it gone.

------------------------------------

_Don't ring, don't ring,_ Kouichi begged, staring nervously at the clock. Mr. 'L' was droning on in his monotone voice about important points to keep in mind when conjugating in the past tense in French, all of which Kouichi knew by scanning his book.

"And remember," the man said just as the bell rang, "by the start of next week you should decide whether you're doing French or Spanish."

_It rang,_ the boy thought, dismally getting out of his seat. _I can't do this. I need to run away! I need to stop panicking. DUSKMON, ADVICE!_

Duskmon appeared beside Kouichi, a smirk evident. _I could always tell her to not go. After all, I do get until Monday_.

Furiously, Kouichi thought, _NO. I refuse to let you do something as stupid as that. Leave her alone, Duskmon!_ There was a slight pause before Kouichi added, _Please_.

_Fine_.

Kouichi stepped out of the classroom, relieved. He immediately tensed up, however, when Kako approached him.

"Kako..."

"Kouichi," she greeted.

The two locked gazes before turning away and clearing their throats. _Remember,_ Kouichi told himself, _questions. Don't forget._ He turned back to Kako and smiled slightly. "Then, we should get going."

Ever so slightly, Kako nodded and murmured, "Right."

The two walked quietly, side by side. But there was a strange feeling at the pit of Kouichi's stomach. No matter what, he couldn't seem to get rid of it. He shot a quick glance in Kako's direction, but she seemed perfectly fine. _What is it?_ Kouichi wondered. It wasn't like any other feeling he encountered before. He felt as if...

Almost immediately, he whirled his head around. Quite coincidentally, Kako did as well. The two exchanged glances, looked behind their shoulder, then came to a halt.

"You too?" Kako asked, eyes narrowing.

Kouichi nodded. "As if we're being watched..."

She let out a laugh, "But what idiot would want to spy on us?"

Kouichi soon joined her laughter. She was right, after all. There was no reason for anyone to spy on them at all.

------------------------------------

"You know," Kako murmured warily as they entered the restaurant, "Hideki has a shift here..."

_Great._ Laughing it off, Kouichi asked, "Does he? When?"

Looking grumpy, Kako muttered, "That's the thing. I don't know. He has shifts in every restaurant in town, it seems like."

Kouichi gulped at that. _Is it possible to _not_ get stalked by Hideki?_ The boy drew a breath. _Time to ask,_ he decided. "Kako..."

"Yeah?"

"There's a few things I wanted to ask you."

She nodded. "I know."

"Do you mind?" he asked nervously.

_Yes._ Forcing a smile, Kako shook her head and replied, "Shoot away."

He started immediately, "Duskmon-"

"That's because of the intense distrust between us. See, we don't really know why Duskmon is here. It shouldn't be possible, but he's here, and it's just...weird. I think Rai knows, but no one will tell me," Kako answered, eyes focused on the table top.

"Your dad-"

Again, Kako cut in, "Hideki won't tell me. I tried last night, and he just brushed me off. I think he was still annoyed that I helped you, but what the hell? He's a jerk himself." Her eyes met his. "And...well, anything else?"

_So many things to talk about...and I can't think of anything._ After quickly making an order when the waitress passed by, Kouichi asked, "You think he'll tell you?" Kako shrugged. "You want to know, huh?" A nod was the response. "Sorry," the boy murmured, "that I'm making this a lot more awkward than it should be."

"It's okay. You know," she replied, an eyebrow raised, "it still feels like we're being followed."

"Why am I not surprised?" Kouichi lowered his head until his chin touched the table. In a whisper, he told her, "Izumi and Takuya have one table to my right, Tomoki's got a table with Katsuharu and Teppei behind you. And, not surprisingly, Kouji and Junpei are a few tables behind me."

Kako opened her mouth and Kouichi hissed, "Don't!" After seeing she had shut her mouth, he let out a sigh and sat up straight. "Are you doing Spanish or French?"

"French. It doesn't really matter, because Hideki knows both. But French seems a lot more fun to butcher," she replied. Noticing Kouichi's baffled look, she tilted her head to the side. "What?"

"Nothing...hey, you wanna leave?" he suddenly asked.

"Why?"

"Do you have my hat?" When Kako turned pink and nodded, he asked, "Can you give it to me? And I'll bug you about why you have it later."

Silently, she took the hat out and handed it to him. Kouichi leaned over to take it, nearly dropping the item at the contact with Kako's hand. A strange shock ran through him. He yanked his hand away and grabbed the hat with his other hand.

"What..."

"...was..."

"-that?" the two chorused, looking up at each other.

The next thing he knew, Kouichi's right index finger was grabbed tightly by Kako. Her own index finger hovered about an inch away. Bringing it closer, she muttered, "What was that?"

Kouichi did his best to free his finger. "Let go!" he scowled, trying to yank his finger away.

Kako tightened her grip even more. She pulled his finger closer and began to poke it with her own repetitively, waiting for the strange shock they had experienced to happen again. "Come on! Why won't it work again? Oh, give me a break..."

He could feel his face redden. _How ridiculous do we look?_ "Kako..."

"What-WHA!" Kako's chair flew back, causing her to fall to the floor. Kouichi's chair scooted back about an inch. Shocked, and not because of the repeat of the surge from before, he rose to his feet and ran over to Kako. "Kako," he murmured, helping her up. "I think we should go."

Wincing, Kako nodded and stood up. Kouichi quickly placed the money on the table, then put on his hat, dashing out of the restaurant, Kako only a few feet behind him.

Little did they notice the fourth party in the restaurant.

------------------------------------

A/N-

Quick update. I couldn't explain that last part how I wanted to. Maybe the next chapter will clear it up. If you have any questions, please ask, because chances are I'll forget the points I wanted to clarify. Cool. This chapter warped from what I wanted it to be. Darn. Well, Kouji had to be serious.

Anyway, next chapter...will probably be posted Monday. I don't really get a chance to post on weekends, and it _is_ Thursday. Horrible time to update. Sorry, but _hopefully_ chapter seven will be done and posted sooner.

Thank you for the reviews:

**The Light's Refrain, Catwarrior, PrincessYami, WithBrokenWings, Snowy Leopardess, GemmaniGirl**

Also, it'd be a lot more help if you could explain why you didn't like a certain part of the story, so next time I get an idea like that, I can write it differently and (hopefully) to your liking.

Review or Flame.


	7. From A Different Perspective

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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From a Different Perspective...

------------------------------------

Lunch was when Kouji had told Takuya and the others that Kouichi was taking Kako out on a date. And lunch was when they had decided to follow the older twin.

"I mean," Takuya declared with a cough, "Can't have them doing something they shouldn't be doing, right?"

That was his excuse, as well as Izumi's, Junpei's, Tomoki's, Katsuharu's and Teppei's. Kouji, however, had a different excuse altogether. He wanted to see Kouichi fail. And if it was up to him to make it happen, he would be the cause.

Of course, there was the other side of Kouji that told him, _Stay out of their way_. But jealousy consumed and got the better of him. Freed from the chains of Takuya's bet, it was easy to make it seem like an innocent gesture, volunteering information out like that.

They quietly followed Kouichi with the guidance of Agunimon and Blitzmon. It was only then that they discovered that Kazemon had joined them, even to Izumi's surprise. Kouji planned their sneak into the restaurant in order to make it seem as inconspicuous as possible. However, him having to share a table with Junpei seemed to ruin it all.

...And that was why he was stuck in the restaurant, asking Junpei which he should choose: French or Spanish.

"...And of course, French you have all those annoying nasal sounds and stuff," Junpei continued, taking a bite out of the burger. "Mm..." He swallowed and declared, "So I'd say, choose Spanish! Mainly because Mr. L doesn't teach it. That guy's majorly multilingual..."

While Junpei continued his babble, Kouji allowed his gaze to wander around the room. Quite obviously, it fell upon Kako and Kouichi. _What are they doing...?_ Kouji frowned, narrowing his eyes on the two as Kako began to poke Kouichi's finger with one of her own, quite viciously, one might add.

Then it happened; Kako's chair flew back, sending her tumbling out. A bright light flew out from the contact between the two a second before she did, and Kouichi was left unharmed.

Kouji immediately rose to his feet, seeing the two dash out of the restaurant. _That light,_ he thought with a frown. _It's...familiar_...

He didn't bother to wait for the others. Dashing out of the restaurant, Kouji left Junpei to pay for the food.

------------------------------------

Takuya let out an exasperated sigh. Of all the independent, jealous, serious, _killjoys_ in the world, Kouji, by far, was whom he considered the worst. He stood up and motioned to Tomoki and Junpei, thankful that neither he nor Izumi had ordered anything to eat.

It couldn't be said that _he_ himself had seen what had happened, but he hadn't missed the fireworks. Even Izumi had seen the flash of light, yet the rest of the customers seemed to have only noticed Kako falling. Only Tomoki, Kouji and Junpei had followed the trail of the light, which seemed to have vanished once it hovered in front of Kouichi.

_Is that supposed to mean something?_ wondered the boy, rising out of his seat and chasing after Kouji. He only hoped Izumi would understand. "Kouji!" Takuya called out, running over to the bandana boy, who had stopped outside the restaurant. Eventually, the rest of the group came out, all crowding the entrance.

Kouji stood unmoving, eyes closed. "That light..."

"Yeah."

"It stopped by Kouichi. And then it just vanished. You think..." Kouji opened his eyes and turned to Takuya. "You think it has something to do with Duskmon and Lowemon?"

_Who knows?_ Takuya shrugged. "It's a possibility, I guess."

"Then it's because of Duskmon, isn't it?"

Surprised, Takuya took a step back. A frown appeared as he realized what was happening. Holding up his hands, he murmured, "Hold it, Kouji. Clear your head. I know you still like Kako-"

"I don't!"

"Uh, w-well, anyway, even so-"

"I DON'T!" Kouji yelled again, sending a furious glare in the direction of the goggle boy. "Don't you _dare_ assume that. I don't like her, okay?"

_How alike they are,_ Takuya realized, shaking his head. "Okay. You don't like her," he said in hopes to mollify Kouji. He inhaled and turned to Izumi for help.

Izumi bit her lower lip. "So...Kouji...why don't we go to a movie or something? I mean, Katsuharu and Teppei are rarely in town-"

"I don't _care_," Kouji returned rudely.

Katsuharu snorted, "If I remember, you were yelling at us to get out of the Digital World, am I right? 'Oh, it's so dangerous!' Blah, blah, blah. Well _guess what_? We care enough for Tomoki to say he really shouldn't hang out with _you_ of all people. How pathetic can you get? Jealous just because your brother has a girl you want? Here's a little message. Get out of your jealousy. It's dangerous."

"Katsuharu," Tomoki sighed, sulking a bit. He was about to say more when he found the goggle boy's hand in front of him.

"No, Tomoki, Katsuharu has a point," Takuya declared. "Kouji, I think we need to talk." Kouji's glare intensified, but he nodded. Takuya turned to the rest. "We'll meet up at my house?"

"Yes!" Izumi replied, shooting him a smile.

Takuya nodded, and the two groups separated. Letting out an angry sigh, Takuya immediately turned to Kouji. "What the hell is your problem, Kouji? Did you let the bet get to your head? Obviously, you did. There was a point to prove, sure, but you _actually_ went through it for this long. This isn't baseball. It's not 'three strikes, you're out!' in this game. There's a lot more to be lost!" the goggle boy snapped as they began walking.

Remaining quiet, Kouji kicked a nearby rock. "What are we really talking about?" he suddenly asked.

"I'm talking about that light. You know what that light was, right?" Kouji nodded and Takuya continued, "So then one can assume Kouichi will know soon or already _does_ know. Obviously, there are things that need to be taken into account here. Do you not remember what Hideki told us?"

"I remember-"

Takuya cut him off smoothly, "Then you'll do exactly as I say. No more bothering Kouichi and Kako, understood?"

"Takuya-"

"GOT IT?"

Defeated, Kouji nodded and looked away. "Got it..."

------------------------------------

Kako drew a deep breath before settling against the wall to catch her breath. "Th-that was weird..."

Looking at his hands, Kouichi wondered exactly what that light had been. It seemed to have stop just short of him. _Is it because Lowemon and Duskmon are the warriors of darkness?_ He sighed and turned to Kako. "Well, Hideki _did_ say your place. Let's go."

The girl shifted uneasily and murmured, "I don't want to."

"Why?"

"_He's_ there today," she muttered.

A frown appeared on Kouichi's features. "Don't tell me you're afraid of your stepfather," he groaned, shutting his eyes.

"But he's mean!" she insisted. "I don't like him! And I don't know if Hideki's home..."

With a snort, Kouichi reminded her, "He _should_ be. He practically bit my head off when he told me to come over today." Opening his eyes, the boy smiled. "Come on. Don't let the guy get to you."

"You're right!" Kako decided, suddenly filled with determination. "After all," she declared, "if anything goes wrong, you can beat him up!"

The smile faded. "Kako..." Kouichi groaned, walking away.

"Stop slouching!" she replied, skipping along beside him. "Come on, Kouichi! If anyone can knock some sense into the guy, you can, right?" Kako let out a laugh as he slouched even more.

Kouichi made sure his face was hidden from her as he straightened up. If the light was what he thought it was, then his hypothesis was correct. _I have to do something,_ he realized, _and soon_. _But what can I do about _this? _I'd rather it was Lucemon_...

One thing he was sure of was that he needed to get rid of it, and soon.

------------------------------------

"Hideki!" Kako called out, opening the door. "I'm home!" Silence met her. Intimidated, Kako stepped back, bumping into Kouichi. "Sorry," murmured the girl, unconsciously moving back even further.

Impatiently, Kouichi pushed her forward. In an attempt to quiet her fears, he took his hat off his head, placed it on hers and whispered, "It's okay. It's your house after all, right?" When she turned around, he gave her an encouraging smile.

Feeling even worse, Kako turned back around. The sound of footsteps brought her back to her senses. Slowly, her eyes widened. She swallowed. Kako was on her toes, ready for anything.

The girl let out a scream and flung herself at Kouichi as the figure stepped out of the kitchen. Surprised, Kouichi barely caught her and was thrown off balance. He managed to lean against the door, which he had closed (much to his relief), thereby lessening the impact as he slid to the floor. "Kako..." he grumbled, staring at the girl in his hands. She whimpered and shook uncontrollably. "Kako! It's just Hideki."

Kako was still trembling as she turned her head around to find her brother covering his mouth in an attempt not to laugh. A choked sob suddenly escaped her lips and Kako ended up bursting into tears, burying her face in Kouichi's jacket.

There was an irritable look on Kouichi's face. Clearing his throat, he pushed her off slightly and uttered, "At _least_ let me get up." In response, Kako wailed louder, clutching to him tighter.

"Kako, get off the guy!" Hideki eventually snapped once he decided he was thoroughly amused. Slowly realizing his mistake, he corrected himself: "Twerp, not guy."

Seconds later, Kako quieted down and tried to regain her normal breathing pattern. Her eyes fluttered shut, and she was thankful that neither boy could see. Although she didn't really want to admit it much to even herself, Kako was enjoying the position she was in. There was a warmth that emanated from Kouichi, one that was all _too_ inviting. Coming back to her senses, Kako pushed away and stood up, glaring at her brother. "You _jerk_, what's your problem?" she snapped, wiping her eyes.

Hideki chuckled darkly and pushed her aside. "You," he said to Kouichi. "Get up."

Eying Hideki warily, Kouichi stood up. The two quietly exchanged their expressions; Kouichi's a blank look, Hideki's a glare. Hideki finally motioned for Kouichi to follow him and headed to the backyard.

Kouichi was only half surprised to find it filled with weapons, a mat, and four posts which held up the makeshift canopy. For some reason, he held his breath. _It's like Mr. Saito's practice room, only...outside_, he thought, exhaling. _Why are we here again?_ He voiced his thoughts aloud.

However, he noticed the smirk too late.

"Think fast," Hideki replied, tossing him a sword. "We'll see how much you actually learned."

The boy barely had any time to react as Hideki stepped towards him, ready to strike with his own sword. Frantically, Kouichi fumbled around with the sword in his hand before he got a proper grip and blocked the blow. From that very first hit, Kouichi knew he would be on the defensive.

"There's a lot-"

Kouichi barely dodged the slash.

"-you need-"

He fell back, scrambling back to his feet quickly as Hideki brought his sword down.

"-to learn still!"

Two swings later, Kouichi was on the floor, eyes shut. The point of the blade was barely an inch away from his neck.

Hideki withdrew the sword, heaving it over his shoulder. "So," he murmured, "have you learned anything?"

_Those techniques,_ Kouichi realized, letting out a dry cough. Swallowing, he whispered in a barely audible voice, "You get your techniques from videogames..."

"Anything else?"

"If I...hope to beat you...I need to examine..."

------------------------------------

"...videogames," Kouichi muttered. "Videogames and pointless TV. Give me a break..."

Kako refrained from harming him. "Shh," she hissed, "it's the best part!"

Much to his relief, Kouichi was granted a break from playing videogames, but instead was stuck watching _Rurouni Kenshin_. The only thing keeping him from crying was Kenshin's sword. _If it isn't meant to hurt anyone...how does he do it? I _have_ to know...I want that sword...it's so cool_..._  
_  
"Kouichi...KOUICHI. You're _drooling!_" Kako snapped.

Kouichi snapped out of his reverie and blushed furiously as he wiped his mouth. "Uh...hi."

She sent him a glare. "Why were you drooling?" the girl inquired, eyes narrowing on him.

Nervously, Kouichi looked around. _Where's Hideki when you need him?_ "Umm..."

"Well?"

_Is it just me or is she out to murder me?_ Kouichi swallowed and leaned away from Kako, eventually falling back in his seat on the couch. "Uh, Kako? Can you stop leaning towards me?" he asked. As she helped him up, he muttered, "And I wasn't drooling. I was just thinking of Kenshin's sword."

"AND DROOLING," she added furiously. "So for all I know, thinking about Kenshin's sword could be a lie!"

Irritated, he snapped, "A lie to cover up _what?_" Seeing Kako raise an eyebrow, he became even more puzzled. "No, really," he asked, "What?"

Slowly, Kako broke out giggling, looking away from him.

"What?" he whined, returning his attention to the TV. "Hey, Kako, why does your brother use videogame and anime moves?"

"Because he's a loser like that," she answered sweetly.

He gave her a skeptical look in turn, but Kako didn't respond. Instead, she leaned back in her seat and shut her eyes. After a long silence, the two locked gazes. "I was going to practically interrogate you back at the restaurant," Kouichi admitted.

Smiling softly, Kako murmured, "I know. You forgot all the questions, huh?" When he nodded, she laughed. "I really don't know why Hideki does that. I think...the styles appeal to him because they're...they're real, but they aren't, I guess. I mean, not many people expect anyone to learn how to use a sword from a videogame. He must've spent _hours_ just on one technique. It's probably because videogame characters have their flaws when they use their attacks. He uses this to his advantage," she muttered.

"Not following, but sure!" the boy laughed.

Kako laughed as well, "I can't explain it, either."

"Kako...?"

"Yeah?"

Kouichi looked down at his feet. "Ah...about Duskmon," he started.

"Slave, put the volume up," Duskmon interrupted, appearing behind the couch.

Letting out a yell, Kako jumped in her seat, coincidentally pressing the button to put the volume up. Immediately, Kouichi grabbed the remote and lowered the volume considerably before turning to Duskmon. "What?" he snapped angrily.

The digimon smirked and replied, "You called, and I got bored."

"I didn't call you!" Duskmon's eyes narrowed on Kouichi. Immediately, Kouichi realized the message. Letting out a sigh, he nodded and muttered, "Fine. Just...leave. I wanna beat Hideki."

"You _could_ always let me possess you..."

"No thanks." Kouichi turned back to the TV as Duskmon slid back into the shadows. Ignoring Kako's confused gaze, he put up the volume ever so slightly.

------------------------------------

"There _is_ something I really want to ask you," Kouichi realized before he stepped outside of the house. Turning back around to face Kako, he held his breath. _Dare I?_

Kako stood a foot in front of him. "What is it?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

"So...your stepfather isn't home?" Nervously, Kouichi swallowed and looked away.

The girl shrugged and replied, "I guess not. Or not yet, anyway. Don't tell me that was what you were going to ask."

He shook his head, smiling slightly. "No...I...never mind," he murmured. "Later."

"See you tomorrow," whispered Kako, shutting the door as soon as he left. A cold gust blew in from the open balcony. "Hideki!"

Hideki walked inside, shutting the balcony door. "What?"

Nervously not meeting her brother's eyes, Kako murmured, "I want to know...who is...our real dad?" She let out a shaky breath, trying to keep calm.

As if she never asked, Hideki walked into the kitchen. Kako heard him open the fridge. "Am I supposed to make dinner today?" he asked.

"Hideki, just answer my question!"

"I'll make it anyway. Oh, and _Dad's_ business trip got extended."

"Hideki!" Kako cried desperately. "Why won't you tell me?"

Hideki walked out of the kitchen after shutting the fridge. He walked up to his little sister and shook his head. "Not now," he murmured, "because he made me promise. Now be a good little girl and do me a favor."

Furiously, Kako kicked her brother's shin, receiving no reaction. "What?" she snapped, ignoring her burning eyes.

Hideki handed her a small box. "Give that to Saito, will you? Not today, mind you, it's too dark for you to go out now. Later," he told her hastily just as she made her way to the door.

Kako stopped and nodded, instead heading to her room. _Why can't I know...?_

------------------------------------

The days passed slower than Kouichi wished them to. Thousands of thoughts filled his head. They never left. All those possibilities to end the troubles that he had, and he didn't want any of them to take place.

But he _needed_ to make a choice, and soon. It was when he returned home from practice at Hideki's house later that week that he found his opportunity to get rid of one of his troubles.

"Kouichi!"

Earlier that day, Hideki had forced him into another match. Needless to say, Kouichi had lost once more, only Hideki had made sure to bruise him up a lot. Letting out a sigh, he turned his head and found Takuya and Kouji sitting on the couch, only Kouji interested in the videogame they were playing. The goggle boy stood up and marched towards him, dragging him outside again, despite Kouichi's protests.

"I want you to do me a favor," Takuya murmured, shutting the front door.

Kouichi looked at Takuya with tired eyes. "It's a Saturday, right?"

"Yeah."

He sighed, "I've been up since five playing videogames and watching _Rurouni Kenshin_ so I could try to beat Hideki. I haven't even learned half of the techniques he uses, I still don't know what happened back at the restaurant, I owe Kako another date, I haven't done my homework that was supposed to be due on Friday, Hideki told me Ogata's coming back on Monday, I nearly got my arm chopped off today, and Kako wouldn't talk to me, but I don't know why. Then there's a whole bunch of other things I can't talk about that I'm worried about. But anyway, what's the favor?" At once, Kouichi felt guilty, complaining to Takuya like that. _How spoiled do I sound?_ the boy wondered, his eyes slowly sliding shut.

They opened immediately as Takuya named his favor. "I want you to give that ticket to Hawaii to Kako," the boy murmured.

"T-to Kako?"

"Yes."

Kouichi felt rejuvenated. Slowly, he laughed, "That works, doesn't it? I'll give it to Kako! One trouble down!" A grin appeared as he thanked Takuya. "That's a great idea. I never think of these things..."

"Stop acting like that. What, did Kouji's false idiocy flow into you?" the other boy snapped. Kouichi fell silent. Feeling the confusion that emanated from him, Takuya explained, "Kouji...he's jealous, you know that, right? I think this is the only way he'll get better. And don't ask why. You ought to know the answer. But if he sees that you trust him with your own girlfriend that much, maybe he'll stop bugging you two."

_Oh...that's why. Here I thought it would make Kako start talking to me,_ he thought, feeling the newfound energy slowly seep away. "Okay," he muttered. "I never really thought of it that way. Are you sure he's jealous and you're not thinking things up?" Kouichi suddenly asked. Jealous Kouji didn't seem to fit his brother.

Takuya let out a breath, muttering, "Idiot," as he did. Aloud, he said, "Listen, just do it, okay? It'll help Kouji a lot. Oh, and Kazemon came, you know."

"Did she, now?" Kouichi frowned. _Duskmon didn't tell me this_._  
_  
"Yeah. Say...how'd you get your D-Tector and mine?" Takuya suddenly inquired.

Falling silent, Kouichi shrugged. Not sure of what to say, he murmured, "I just...did." It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the truth, either.

"Oh." Hiding his disappointment, Takuya walked back inside, leaving Kouichi to ponder what the goggle boy had just asked of him.

_Give Kako the ticket. Kouji...yeah, that'll work. Oh, hey, there's the paper!_ Kouichi sighed as he bent down to pick up the newspaper. _The zoo? Wait! That's brilliant!_ A smile appeared on his face. "I'll ask her to come to the zoo with me! ...stupid idea for a date, but in case I get bored, I can just read all those information signs! It's brilliant!" Kouichi whispered to himself, running in and plopping down on the couch on the other side of his brother.

Kouji, distracted, turned to his brother. "Where'd you come from?" he yelled, dropping his controller out of his hand.

"Yes! I win!" Takuya cheered.

"Shut up!" the bandana boy snapped, picking up his controller. "Eh...what's that?"

Kouichi showed him the front page of the newspaper. "The zoo."

The younger twin snorted. In a voice heavy with sarcasm, he said, "Lions and tigers and bears, oh, my. What will we ever do?"

A disappointed look overcame Kouichi's face. "You think it's a bad idea?" he asked, suddenly feeling miserable.

"What is?"

"Taking Kako out to the zoo?" There was a hint of hope in his voice, but not too much.

Kouji snatched the paper away from his brother. _The zoo...? The zoo...for a date? Yeah, why not!_ The younger boy nodded slowly, "Yeah, it'll work. Just ask-and don't sound stupid when you do-if she wants to check out the new exhibit. Considering it's a lion, you have a sold deal."

Takuya and Kouichi turned to Kouji, both having an eyebrow raised. "Exactly how do you know?" the two boys questioned.

A smirk played on Kouji's lips. Standing up, he murmured, "I'm just a psychic like that."

"As psychic as Shinya is mature," countered Takuya. "Come on, spill!"

"TV is very powerful," Kouji replied.

Kouichi eyed the TV, which showed a pink Kirby and a Pikachu, both facing each other on a street. Seconds later, a car came, knocking them both in the air. Hiding a laugh, the older boy coughed, "Right...powerful..."

"_TV_, not videogames," Kouji snapped.

This prompted Kouichi to think. "Hey...Kouji?"

"Yeah?"

_How do I phrase this?_ "If...well," the boy murmured. He tried to think of a proper way to phrase his question. Finally he asked, "Do you find...videogames any help when it comes to kendo?"

"Me? Uh...I guess, sometimes. Like...if I want to remember a move, I use an awesome cool name they use in videogames. Why?" Kouji asked, staring at his older brother.

_I'm so confused. Why did I slack off that _one_ day? WHY?_ Kouichi shrugged innocently. "Just wondering," he replied evasively. "I...ought to go to the bookstore! Need a new book. Bye!"

Takuya and Kouji exchanged glances. Shaking his head, Kouji disappeared into the kitchen. "Hey, Takuya, do you want anything to eat?" he called out.

Letting out a sigh, Takuya answered, "Sure, why not?" _Will he do it?_ The goggle head could only hope...

------------------------------------

Kako stared at the package in her hand. Hideki had asked her to give it to Saito quite a few days ago, but she had been caught up in other matters, the girl had forgotten about it. Guiltily, she entered the bookstore and placed the box on the counter. "Hi, Mr. Saito. Um, see, Hideki asked me to-" she started.

A smiling face greeted her. "Hello, Kako," the man interrupted, taking the box. "Thank you. Now, will you do me a favor?"

"Shut up?" guessed Kako.

He laughed and shook his head. Instead, he took out another box and handed it to her, saying, "Open this when you get home. Make sure no one sees it, not even Hideki. Alright? Open it in your room, if you must."

The girl nodded. "Ookies!" she replied, about to head outside when she walked straight into Kouichi. Kako fell to the floor, tightening her grip on the box.

"Ah-uh..." Kouichi stuttered, reddening. _Way to go, Kouichi. Expect her to say 'yes' now?_ He sighed and helped her up, mumbling an apology as he did. "Um, hey," he murmured awkwardly, "I wanted to talk to you..."

Kako kept both hands on the box, staring at Kouichi quietly.

The blush on Kouichi's face deepened past crimson. "See, er, that is to say, um, they have that new exhibit at the zoo, so I was wondering, if you weren't busy...do you wanna check it out?" he asked in a desperate voice.

Kako opened her mouth. A second later, she shut it, unsure of what to say. _Is he asking me out again?_ she wondered. Aloud, she replied, "Sure. Are you okay? You're...all...red."

If it was possible, Kouichi would have died on the spot. Instead, he shook his head and shut his eyes. "Um, one more thing..."

"Yeah?"

"Never mind," he said quickly. _Yeah, what do I say? 'Hey, Kako, I'm not going to Hawaii, right? Well, the extra ticket's just sitting there, so do you want to go for me?' Hah, no, Kouichi, you'll plan this, and you'll plan it well! I'll just...ask her when we're in the zoo,_ the boy decided, opening his eyes and smiling. "So what's the box?"

It was Kako's turn to redden. "Nothing!" she snapped. Noticing Kouichi's blank stare, she turned away. _Why do I get jumpy when it comes to personal questions...?_ Clearing her throat and hoping to distract him, Kako asked, "Uh...so, when should we go to the zoo?"

"W-well...next week? I find...Saturday practices with Hideki to be deadly. Plus, they're closed Sunday and we have homework every other day," Kouichi replied.

"Right! Wait...how about Friday? Hideki said I can't steal you away from Saturday practices."

"Darn. Uh, sure, Friday's great!" laughed Kouichi, wishing he hadn't slept when he should have been meditating. _If only it wasn't so hard to meditate_.

"Okay!"

"Okay!"

Kako looked away and murmured, "So...see you Monday? Hideki decided he doesn't want to bother with Sunday practices."

Smiling slightly, Kouichi nodded in affirmation. "Yeah," he murmured. "Monday."

He turned to Mr. Saito as soon as Kako ran out the door. "Hi, Mr. Saito. What's a good book to read when you have ten billion things on your mind?" the boy asked, slouching over.

Mr. Saito smiled. "I have _just_ the book..."

------------------------------------

A/N-

Remember that fourth party? That will be later on. Sorry for taking so long to update. I've also been working on _Cursed Gifts_ a lot (On binder paper, as my dad refuses to let me type for a long period of time), and the twins are a bit OOC. For Kouji, it's just the first one or two chapters. But Kouichi…well, he's got his excuse, I suppose. Hm.

Kouji, at the beginning of this chapter, seemed icky to me. But he was better in the end, thank whatever (I think). Oh, next chapter will have a very interesting...interesting (and confusing) encounter! Now to find a great title for that...

Thank you for the reviews-

**GemmaniGirl, PrincessYami, WithBrokenWings, Winter's Light**

Review or Flame.


	8. Beyond The Door

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Beyond The Door

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It was Thursday, and Kouichi had no idea whatsoever about how to ask Kako if she wanted to go to Hawaii in his place. Instead of doing the homework Rai assigned while he had time in school, he stayed up until midnight for the past few days, realizing he hadn't done any of it, and spent the first hour of the new day scribbling his homework.

Hideki's training became more focused on sparring and less on examining techniques of fictional characters. He recognized quite a few of the techniques Hideki used, and eventually found a pattern or two.

All his school studies and training hadn't given him much time to go back to the bookstore or worry about anything related to the digimon. In fact, Duskmon and Lowemon hadn't bothered him in days; he had completely forgotten their existence.

It was Thursday, and Kouichi could clearly remember he had nearly walked into Ogata's classroom _again_ that week.

He was lucky that Kouji had reminded him. He didn't want a repeat of Monday, when he had made a narrow escape, only feet away from being caught by the teacher he despised.

But all that didn't matter. It was Thursday, and Kouichi was in the library, actually doing the homework Ms. Kawai had given him. There was silence, solitude and work. Just another normal day at school. _Yep,_ Kouichi thought as he finished the last problem of his math homework, _I could really get used to this_.

He thought too soon. It was at that moment that Duskmon appeared. "D-Tector," was the first word he spoke to the startled Kouichi.

Kouichi nearly yelled. However, his senses kicked in and he realized getting thrown out of the library would do him no good. There were no other sanctuaries to hide him from Ogata. Drawing a breath instead, he hissed, "What's your problem Lowe-I mean-Duskmon?"

Duskmon didn't fail to notice his error. "Do I look like Lowemon?"

"N-no," Kouichi muttered, "that was a slip of the tongue and a complete accident considering you all haven't been around for a long time. I've lost track of things. Anyone else come in?"

The digimon considered Kouichi's excuse before answering the question, "Yes, just Kazemon. We have a D-Tector out, though. And-what are you working on?" Duskmon's eyes trailed to the piece of paper Kouichi placed aside that was covered with scribbles.

A tinge of red appeared on the boy's cheeks. He grabbed the paper and crumpled it in his hand. "Nothing," he snapped in a whisper. "D-Tector. Do you know whose?" Absentmindedly, he smoothed out the paper and placed it in his math book.

Duskmon shook his head. Kouichi sighed and placed his notebooks back in his backpack. He dashed out of the library and headed straight for his locker, where he stuffed in all his books and his backpack, just barely. However, he didn't forget to take out his D-Tector, first. Slamming the locker shut, Kouichi checked his D-Tector for a signal. His face fell immediately at first glance.

"It's out of school," he murmured in disappointment.

"So?"

"I can't just race out of school, Duskmon!" Kouichi exhaled sharply and pocketed his D-Tector. "I'll have to think this through. There has to be something else..."

The idea just passed him by. Literally.

"Ms. Kawai!" he called out, racing after his teacher down the hall. "Um..." He stopped awkwardly, wondering if his excuse was enough reason to get him out of school. "Th-there's a D-Tector," he stuttered, wondering why it felt so strange to explain to her of all people, "and..."

"Go ahead," she murmured, waving a hand dismissively. "The signal dies down quickly, and we need that D-Tector, so I suggest you hurry. If anyone asks, say you're getting a cappuccino for me. In fact, get one for me on the way." Rai turned around to face him and placed the money in his hand before turning back around to be absorbed in the papers she was holding.

_Right. Whatever. D-Tector time!_ Kouichi pocketed the money and raced out as fast as humanly possible. He whipped out his D-Tector to check where the next D-Tector was.

It surprised him.

_In Dad's house again? What is this?_ Confused, Kouichi jogged down to his father's house. "Duskmon," he muttered, "why is it here again?"

In response, Duskmon murmured, "Maybe it seems like a sufficient portal."

It took five minutes for Kouichi to get the key hidden in the branch once more. Deciding that it was pointless to come back three more times to do this, he just pocketed the key and ran in after opening the door.

"Is it just one D-Tector, Duskmon?" Kouichi asked as he climbed the stairs and entered Kouji's room. _A mess. Sheesh, did he come back after last time?_ Curiously, Kouichi decided to look around.

"Yes, just one," Duskmon snapped. "Get it before the signal dies out."

Grudgingly, Kouichi opened the closet, staring at his D-Tector as he did. The signal faded. _Which one, which one?_ he wondered, staring at the boxes. Shrugging, he pulled the very first one out of the stack and opened it.

Bandanas.

Kouichi sighed and pulled the next one off, wishing he could just tear off the flaps as he opened it.

Bandanas.

Groaning, Kouichi pulled the next one off of the stack and wished he hadn't gotten his brother so many bandanas. Half-heartedly, he gazed at it before poking at the flaps. "Open sesame," he muttered, slowly opening it.

A bright rush of yellow light flashed in front of him. Kouichi didn't have any time to react. Surprised, his eyes widened as the familiar blue and yellow D-Tector of Junpei's formed before him. Letting out a nervous laugh, Kouichi grabbed it out of the light and stared at it. The light immediately disappeared and he was left with the D-Tector, boxes of bandanas, and a mess in Kouji's room.

_Time to clean up. I really hope Ms. Kawai doesn't mind,_ he thought, pocketing both D-Tectors and quickly putting the bandana boxes back up.

------------------------------------

"Kouichi, what are you doing?" Duskmon inquired as Kouichi sat down in the seat in front of his brother's desk.

The boy shrugged. "I just...want to see what Kouji's been doing here. It's kind of weird, but it's not at the same time. So, how'll a little peek hurt?" he muttered, mostly to himself. _It won't, will it?_ Biting his lower lip, Kouichi examined the items on Kouji's desk.

A picture frame with pictures of both families, along with random other things. Papers were scattered across, crumpled in most cases. Kouichi took one of the crumpled papers and smoothed it out.

In an instant, he knew Takuya had been right. What Kouji needed most was to be trusted. Slowly, he smoothed the other papers out, reading them one by one. Slowly, Kouichi understood exactly what his brother was going through.

Slowly, Kouichi was becoming bored.

"What a drama king," he muttered, recrumpling the papers that had been crumpled to make it seem as if he wasn't prying. "And I thought I was bad."

Duskmon stared at the boy before him. _Isn't he?_

_What was that?_ Kouichi turned to the digimon and glared accusingly. "I am not that bad!"

"I never said you were," replied Duskmon in his defense. "By 'he' I could have been talking about Kouji." _What a stupid child_.

"I'm not stupid!" Kouichi snapped, standing up. Letting out a sigh, he looked around his brother's room once more. _Was that all he was doing?_ Kouichi's brain hurt thinking of the possibilities, _All that writing so he'd get rid of all those feelings. I ought to do that more often so I don't confuse myself_. "Well," the boy murmured, "Time to get the cappuccino."

He walked out of his brother's room and stopped. Turning his head slightly to look beyond his shoulder, Kouichi sighed. _Sorry, Kouji_.

------------------------------------

Kouichi had never felt so frightened in his entire life. There he was, in the coffee shop, a boy who should have been in school, but was buying coffee for his teacher. _She did this on purpose_, Kouichi thought, suddenly becoming annoyed by the lady behind him and her constant mutterings about him. It was as if she thought he couldn't hear. Nevertheless, Kouichi kept his composure and eventually reached the front of the line.

The only problem was the person who was helping him.

"No..._you_?" Kouichi snapped, digging out the money. Letting out an exasperated sigh, he grumbled, "Can't you _not_ work here? Actually, this isn't so bad...um...Ms. Kawai wants a cappuccino." The boy placed the money on the counter.

Hideki's eyes slowly widened. He took the money and called for one of his co-workers to make the cappuccino. Turning back to Kouichi, he asked, "She _let you out of school_ just to get her a cappuccino? Man, I wish my teachers did that for me." A dreamy look overcame him. "Ahhh...if only there was a love potion-"

The boy cleared his throat and interrupted, "Don't wanna hear it." He lowered his voice and asked, "Were you in the restaurant when I went out with Kako last week?"

Taking the cappuccino from the man behind him, Hideki shook his head. Before Kouichi could speak, he said, "_However..._"

"However?"

"Rai was there. She told me _everything_ that happened. You _do_ realize she was behind that whole light charade, right?" the young man asked. When Kouichi nodded, he continued, "So you realize what that means."

Looking away, Kouichi nodded. "Marise's diary," he murmured, "affirmed that for me." He took the cappuccino from Hideki and waited for his change.

Hideki slowly counted the change, his eyes glued to the impatient lady behind Kouichi. Finally, he handed the change to Kouichi and added, "Tell Rai I said 'hi,' will you? Oh, and tell Kako that if she doesn't come home right away without slacking, I'm going to make _sure_ she doesn't go anywhere tomorrow. No training for you today, and...wait one second."

Kouichi stood there, blinking and feeling utterly stupid as Hideki ran around, grabbing a pen and a napkin, quickly writing down a note. Finally, he handed it to Kouichi and instructed, "Give that to Kouj-er...twerp two, will you? And for the record, _twerp_..." A mischievous grin played on his lips.

"Yeah?"

"Nothing."

A sour look appeared on Kouichi's face. Hideki smirked and continued, "Just wanted to say 'twerp.' Beat it, twerp."

"One of these days, I'll succeed in defeating you," Kouichi grumbled, sulking out of the shop and back to school.

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Unfortunately, Kouichi had to make sure he hurried before Rai thought he ran away with her money. Minutes later, he was back in school (although he wished he wasn't). A quick glance at his watch told him it was fairly around the time that she would be in Ogata's classroom. He made a quick stop at his locker to get his backpack and books, then headed straight to the classroom.

Kouichi, however, found that Ms. Kawai had just started class. He wondered just _how_ stupid he must have looked, walking in there with her cappuccino in hand. Nevertheless, he handed it to her along with her change, told her what Hideki had asked him to, then sulked slowly to his seat. As he sat down, Kouichi pulled out the napkin and handed it to his brother, wishing he had read what it said first. "From Hideki," was all he said before digging out his notebook.

The younger twin glanced at it quickly before removing it from sight. He glanced at his brother, who was being pestered by Kako. _Today, straight after school,_ he reminded himself.

------------------------------------

Kouichi sighed as he stopped by his house. "Uh-hey, Kouji, you're busy?" he asked as Kouji continued walking past.

"Yes, I'm busy," the boy muttered, ignoring his older brother.

Suddenly feeling lonely, Kouichi looked at the front door, then Kouji. _Mom won't miss me, will she?_ He felt guilty, but Kouichi nevertheless ran off.

------------------------------------

Kako wasn't sure whether to feel safe or unnerved by the fact that Kouji was just a few feet behind her. "Um...Kouji?" she suddenly murmured, turning around.

He looked up at her, face unreadable. Calmly, he stopped in his tracks and nodded.

Nervously, Kako allowed her eyes to wander around. Finally, she met his eyes and asked, "What are you doing?"

"Hideki asked me to come over."

_Damn Hideki._ Sighing, Kako asked, "Well, could you stop acting like you're stalking me? And you're really quiet. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Kouji murmured, walking ahead of Kako, ignoring her as she began some story about how usually when someone was quiet, they were sick or something or another. He didn't bother listening. Instead, Kouji picked up his pace to leave her behind.

Confused, Kako stopped in her tracks and watched him walk off. _What is his problem? I swear, boys,_ she thought, slowing down. _I'd wander off, but Kouichi _did_ tell me Hideki threatened to not let me get out tomorrow._ She let out a sigh. _Boys_...

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Surprisingly, finding another book to read that Kouichi was _interested_ in was hard. After about half an hour of searching, he found exactly what he wanted and was on his way back home. He sighed as he reached the door, wondering what he should do to ask Kako about the ticket.

"Mom," he called out, "I'm home."

Laughter met his ears. A frown appeared on Kouichi's face. _What's this about? We have guests?_ Confused, Kouichi walked in to the kitchen, immediately dropping the book in his hand and his backpack.

Kanaye sat in the kitchen, talking to his mother.

Kouichi could feel his blood boiling. _What is he-that...what's he...doing here?_ Swallowing, Kouichi pondered the possibilities, but couldn't come up with anything that wouldn't alarm his mother. He nearly screamed when his mother turned to him, smiling. "Kouichi, your friend came over. Oh-are you okay?" she asked, suddenly concerned as her son allowed the anger to show on his face. "Kouichi?"

Doing his best to control himself, Kouichi allowed himself to say in a collected voice, "He's not...my _friend_."

"It was nice meeting you, Ms. Kimura," Kanaye told her in a pleasant voice before standing up and walking up to Kouichi. "You know," the boy murmured, "I do believe naivety runs in the family. This job should be easy."

"Stay _away_ from my family!" Kouichi snapped, throwing a punch at Kanaye. He heard his mother let out a faint scream, but it didn't seem to matter at all.

Kanaye brought out his sword. Kouichi didn't exactly catch _how_ he did. It just seemed to have appeared. Kouichi brought out his D-Tector, allowing his sword to appear a second later. Snatching it out of the air and pocketing his D-Tector, Kouichi lunged at Kanaye, locking blades with the other boy and sending him crashing out the open door. _I'm really glad I didn't close that,_ Kouichi thought, dashing outside.

To his chagrin, Kanaye had landed on his feet, not hurt at all. "Oh, very well. Shall we make this quick?" he asked in a condescending voice.

Angrily, Kouichi ran outside. _Think, Kouichi. What did all those matches against Hideki teach you?_ He managed to parry an attack, just barely, however. Pushing Kanaye back, he yelled, "Yeah, we'll make it quick! I have homework to finish!" _I never did get to finishing all that other homework she gave me_...

"Yes, well at least _you_ don't have to take Ai out on a date to some stupidly expensive restaurant!"

Kouichi stepped forward, on the offensive now. He slashed his sword out, managing to graze Kanaye's shoulder.

"That's because _you're_ stupid and don't know how to pick girls!"

Growling, Kanaye pushed Kouichi back on the defensive, making sure he couldn't get back to attacking. He brought his sword down, hoping to catch Kouichi's arm, but Kouichi stepped back and instead pinned the blade down with his foot.

"And _Kako_ is so much better than Ai?"

Kanaye lifted the sword up, catching Kouichi's foot and tripping him. He was about to bring his sword down, but Kouichi managed to jump in his feet just in time. Instead, Kanaye was on the defensive again, Kouichi's attacks growing in hostility.

"YES, SHE IS!" the boy yelled, making his first mistake as he thrust his sword forward.

Kanaye chuckled, managing to get behind the boy. Mercilessly, he brought the hilt of his sword down on Kouichi's back. "True," he murmured and stepped back as Kouichi fell to the floor, sword dropped out of his hand. "She _is_ cuter. However, I doubt that she'll live very long."

Kouichi did his best to keep awake. He rolled over onto his back, grabbing Kanaye's hand and yanking it down to get a look at the sword. '_Did you notice any fancy ornaments on it?_' Hideki had asked. Before his vision blacked out on him, Kouichi saw a black stone embedded in the hilt of the sword. Letting go of Kanaye's hand, he allowed himself to fall into darkness.

Disgusted, Kanaye kicked Kouichi away and turned to the doorway, a smug smile on his face. "Ms. Kimura, I suggest you get someone to bring him in. He'll be unconscious for a _very_ long time," he told the horrified lady before walking off.

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Kouichi found himself floating through a dark, bottomless space. No light shone, there were no meaningless items lying around. It wasn't a room, it wasn't a planet, and it wasn't a house. It was simply empty space, utterly dark.

Yet, Kouichi found he could see easily. That was, considering that all that was to be seen was more empty darkness.

_Might as well try,_ he thought, feeling stupidity overcome him. Drawing a breath, he yelled in a voice as loud as possible, "HELLO?"

No answer.

Not even an echo.

Hesitantly, Kouichi lifted a foot and planted it down in front of the other. _If it's all empty space_, he reasoned, _there's no place I can really walk to. But there's a possibility of some place up ahead, right?_ He decided to risk that chance. _And if there's nothing there, I'll just walk around some more,_ the boy concluded.

He kept walking. Then again, Kouichi wasn't sure if it could be considered walking. He felt more like he was floating. _Can I fly?_ Impishly, he grinned and jumped up, feeling as light as a feather.

The feeling lasted for a mere second. Unfortunately, he fell back down, landing lightly on his feet. _It's like on the Digimoon,_ he realized with a smile. _Well, what's the crime in jumping around?_ He continued to jump forward, breathless from the enjoyment.

Eventually, he stopped in front of a large black door. Kouichi stared up at it, wondering how anyone could make a door so large.

"Oh for goodness sakes, it's called imagination. Get in already, stupid!" a voice snapped.

_That's...familiar. Should I be happy?_ Kouichi shivered as he realized exactly whom that voice belonged to. He looked around, trying to locate the speaker, to no avail.

"Open the goddamn door, idiot!"

"Mind your language first," Kouichi snapped in return, wondering how to open the door. Strangely enough, there was a smaller door hidden in the giant door. Confused, Kouichi walked up to it and opened it, continuing, "There are children present." He became even more confused. _Is this something I would normally say?_

The person snorted, "Yeah, you mean _you_? Sheesh, you won't even ask the girl out."

Kouichi frowned. "Where are you?" he asked, looking around. _Who are you?_ he wondered to himself. The room was dark.

The door shut behind him, startling him. Kouichi whirled around in circles countless times before he stopped, feeling nauseated. All of the sudden, a light flickered, and the entire room glowed.

Not to mention it was warm, but Kouichi decided to have his mind stop wandering off track. It didn't work so well. He suddenly became fascinated when he realized there was no light switch in the room. "How's it glow? Is there some hidden light switch? Oh, hey-"

"Shut the hell up."

Kouichi looked up to come face to face with himself. "Hello," he replied pleasantly.

"Yo. Now let's make this quick. You know why you're here, right?"

"Right, um...because I was knocked unconscious by that guy."

His other self seemed to be annoyed. Angrily, the second Kouichi, dressed in complete black, whacked the first Kouichi.

Everything unraveled from there.

"Okay, _I'm_ the smart one! I knew what I was doing!" the first Kouichi, now dressed in white, yelled. "So what was that for?"

"Ya stupid idiot, if you're so smart, it ought to be obvious that you didn't know a single thing you were doing." Sitting down, he muttered, "Let's get down to business."

The two locked glares and nodded.

The one dressed in black cleared his throat and murmured, "We need a form of convenience. I can't just keep calling you Kouichi when I'm Kouichi, too."

"I'll be Kouichi one!"

The second one frowned, but shrugged and nodded. "Sure. Down to business. _You've_ been neglecting me!" Kouichi two snapped in an accusing voice.

Kouichi one just smiled. Leaning back in the armchair, he replied, "Maybe I have. What of it?"

"I _want_ you to uphold your freaking deal!"

"Language, language," the first one sighed. "And I _have_ upheld my part of the deal, Kouichi two. I must have let you out at _least_ three times now. Let's see..." He looked down and began to count of his fingers.

While Kouichi one began to list off all the moments he had let the second one out, Kouichi two nearly broke the table in front of him in half. He clutched a hurt hand and hissed, "Would you _shut the hell up_?"

"Language!" Kouichi one reprimanded sharply.

Angrily, Kouichi two growled, "No! Why should I put up with this crap? We _had_ a deal. Duskmon's proof enough that you broke your side!"

The first one frowned. Standing up, he murmured, "Now isn't the best of times. We're in the middle of a delicate situation. I can't let you ruin-"

"Too bad." Kouichi two stood up.

Kouichi one's eyes narrowed. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to have the fun I was promised." Smirking, Kouichi two headed for the door. "I'll let you take over once I'm done."

"Kouichi two, get back here!" the first one snapped. "KOUICHI!"

But the boy in black paid no heed. Instead, he slammed the door and proceeded to his destination. "Time to patch things up," he muttered, ready to take complete and total control of Kouichi.

------------------------------------

Kouichi's eyes shot open. His body ached, but he didn't care. He sat up in his bed and looked around, taking in the sight. _Perfect,_ he thought. Quietly, he stood up and snuck out of his room and into the living room, where Kouji sat, trying to console their confused and worried mother.

"Mom?" Kouichi murmured. _Remember, play nice for this,_ the boy thought, wishing it were Friday.

Ms. Kimura looked up and wiped her tears away. "K-Kouichi. Would you like anything to eat?"

He shook his head. "I'm fine. What time is it?"

"Around nine," Kouji replied, a frown fixed upon his face.

Nodding, Kouichi managed a small smile. "Oh," he murmured. _Skip the damn homework, who cares about that?_ "Okay, I'm going to sleep, if that's okay..."

Kouji shrugged. "Yeah, go ahead," he muttered.

A smile appeared on Kouichi's face as he slipped back into his room. Tomorrow would definitely be an interesting day.

------------------------------------

A/N-

O.O Kouichi turned evil on us. Okay, maybe not evil. Meh, PM, review or e-mail with questions if you have any, because I bet I confused you all (If not, good). And next chapter, for those of you who strangely fear to PM, review or e-mail (Believe me, I was, too. You might just be lazy.) me, there will be a lengthy explanation on this from questions others asked, _or_...or if no one asks questions, I assume you all get it, and you can stay confused, because I'll never know! But seeing as how I _want_ to know and help nullify the confusion, you really ought to PM, review or e-mail! Or, if you just don't want to show how much you like the story, or you really hate it, flame your questions away.

Thank You for the reviews-

**Winter's Light, PrincessYami, GemmaniGirl, Catwarrior, Snowy Leopardess, Ruki Minamoto, WithBrokenWings**

PM or Review or Flame.


	9. An Unwelcome Confrontation

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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An Unwelcome Confrontation

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"Kakoooo! Wake up, wake up! You'll be late if you don't!"

_That voice...who's singing?_ Still drowsy, Kako rolled around to grab her pillow and stuff it over her head.

It was immediately whacked away.

Angrily, Kako sat up. "For the billionth ti-" She stopped halfway, staring at the being in front of her. _What...what...WHAT?_ Suddenly terrified, she scooted back against the wall, pulling her pillow in front of her.

Last night's events came back to her slowly, but it was enough for her to realize what was in front of her. Sighing, she dropped the pillow and got out of bed. "Morning, Piximon," she mumbled, yawning and heading to the bathroom.

Piximon flew beside her. The digimon hit Kako over the head with the staff in his hands and yelled, "Faster! You'll never make it to school on time!"

"GAAH! WHY ARE YOU HERE? JUST TO BUG ME TO GET READY FOR SCHOOL?"

"No," replied Piximon, "I'm here to guide you!"

Kako looked away, beyond grumpy. She slammed the bathroom door behind her before Piximon could enter, ignoring the yells she got to hurry up. Staring at her toothbrush, Kako wondered, _Why did I even open the box? Of all the digimon...I got the military's general_.

She quickly got ready and raced around to collect her homework. "Where's my math?" she muttered, looking around her room. The papers were held straight in front of her by Piximon. Letting a sigh out, Kako grabbed the papers and murmured a quick thanks.

"Take me to school, too!" Piximon begged just as she stepped out of her room. Kako froze and whirled around.

A smirk appeared on her face, one that never boded well. "Will you help me cheat on my tests?"

"No! Who would even think of that?"

"Will you bug me like you do here?"

"_Someone_ has to."

"THEN NO! Sheesh, Kouichi and I have a..." _Date's not the right word for it,_ she thought glumly. Quickly, Kako snapped, "We have a meeting today! And you can't interfere!"

Piximon lowered himself to Kako's bed and let out a sigh as he heard her storm out the house. Falling back, he muttered, "Should I go follow her?"

"Nah," Hideki replied. "Leave her alone. She's gotta face it herself. I really wish I were subbing. This would be so awesome..."

Snorting, Piximon stood up and flew to the window. "Humans," he muttered, shaking his head.

At this, Hideki laughed. Patting the digimon on the head, he promised, "I'll take you to spy on them while they're out. We _definitely_ shouldn't trust them _then_."

"You're right!"

"Of course."

The two exchanged sly grins before departing.

------------------------------------

Kako was out of breath by the time she reached school. It was a sunny day, to her surprise, as the weather forecast called for gray skies. Not that she complained.

_It's all Kouji's fault. Yeah, he _had_ to come into my room_, she thought, throwing her entire bag into her locker before she realized she needed everything. A sour look appeared and she took her backpack out, slamming the locker shut instead. Kako sighed and sulked around for a while before deciding to go yell at Kouji. He _was_ the reason Piximon was bugging her.

-FLASHBACK-

_Kako stared at the box, wondering exactly what to do with it. _I always end up doing things late, _she realized._ Late to deliver the package, late to open this...

_The girl let out a sigh_. _Her hands reached for the box, slowly undoing the flaps_. _It was at that moment that Kouji threw open the door to her room_. _Scared out of her wits_, _Kako knocked the box to the side_, _spilling out an egg_, _all white with pink polka dots_. _Instead of running for the egg,_ _she decided to idiotically stare at Kouji_, _who_ _stared at the egg in turn_.

_Without warning_, _the egg began to shine_, _and Kako began to panic at the same time_, _wondering what to do_. _Mr. Saito had said to make sure no one else was around when opening it_.

Too late, _Kako thought miserably as Piximon formed_.

-END FLASHBACK-

So Kouji knew of Piximon, and eventually Hideki found out, too. If Kouji hadn't been standing there, gaping like an idiot, perhaps Hideki wouldn't have known. But the two knew, and Kako hadn't been able to get any sleep, thinking she failed Mr. Saito.

Along with that, Piximon continually woke her up, claiming she hadn't done her homework.

_Where is that bandana-headed imbecile?_ Kako let out an exasperated sigh and shut her eyes.

"Boo."

Kako's eyes opened in shock as two arms surrounded her waist. Suddenly blushing, she pushed away to find Kouichi behind her. The blush faded, replaced by a confused look. "Are you...sick, Kouichi?" Kako suddenly asked, placing a hand on his forehead to check his temperature.

But Kouichi just smiled and grabbed her hand. _He...can't be okay,_ Kako thought, gulping as he moved in closer, cutting the space between them. Without warning, his lips were on hers, leaving Kako even more confused than before.

A loud clatter caused Kouichi to pull away. Kako whacked him back and edged away, trying to get as far away from him as possible. Shivering, she looked around for help and found Kouji staring at his brother, books dropped to the floor. Kako seized the chance, dragging Kouji to the side.

"Is he okay?" the girl asked nervously.

Kouji's eyes were still wide. Finally, he shut them and swallowed with some difficulty. A shiver ran down his spine as he glanced at his brother. "Honestly," he told Kako, "I don't know anymore. Kanaye knocked him out yesterday, but he seemed just fine when he woke up last night! And now..." The boy broke off coughing. He pointed to Kouichi and hissed, "Who is that, where's my brother, and what has that imposter done with him?"

A whimper escaped Kako. "I'm scared," she mumbled, looking around. "We have five minutes until the bell rings, right?" Kouji nodded. "I have five minutes to make it into Ogata's classroom and pray Ogata's there so I'm safe!" she declared.

The bandana boy nodded and murmured, "Good luck. I'll see if I can figure out what's wrong with him. Oh, and about Piximon...sorry."

At this, Kako froze. "Uh, y-yeah, right," came a muffled response. Not wanting to deepen the subject, she ran.

Kouji walked back to his fallen books and picked them up, then headed straight for Kouichi, who leaned against his locker. "Where'd she go?" the older twin asked.

Silently, Kouji opened his locker. Neatly placing his books in, he hissed, "What the hell is wrong with you? Is it _amusing_ to scare people like that?"

"Actually..." Kouji's eyes narrowed as he saw his brother thinking for a moment. "Yeah, yeah, it is amusing," the older boy confessed, walking off in the direction Kako had.

The younger twin's jaw dropped. _Who is this? What did Kanaye do to Kouichi?_ "Hey, Kouichi! You better not-ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?" Kouji suddenly screamed when Kouichi plugged his ears. "YOU STUPID SORRY EXCUSE FOR A TWIN, STOP PLUGGING YOUR-hi, Izumi."

Izumi and Takuya stood in front of Kouji, both staring at him as if he was insane. Without warning, Takuya hit Kouji's head and snapped, "What did I say about leaving Kouichi and Kako alone?"

"Is it my fault if suddenly Kouichi decides to make out with her in front of the entire school?"

"What?" Izumi squeaked, shuffling away from Kouji.

A grumpy look appeared on Kouji's face. "Hey, Izumi, _I'm_ not the one making out with the girl, here. _Kouichi_ is," he grumbled.

Takuya was obviously vexed. "So..." he mumbled, "his hormones are kicking in?"

Izumi turned away from the two and declared, "I'll be by my locker, safe from your _disturbing_ conversation."

The two boys let out sighs and continued to discuss the matter.

"Thing is," Kouji muttered, "Kouichi, even if the hormones did kick in, wouldn't be so rash like that. It's just not his style."

"You think an alien took over his mind?" suggested the goggle boy.

Angrily, the other boy growled, "Are you _goggles_ on too tight? Be serious, please!" To emphasize his point, Kouji pulled on Takuya's goggles.

Furiously, Takuya yanked off Kouji's bandana. "Unlike you, _I_ don't have ten billion bandanas!"

Kouji snatched his bandana back and quickly put it on. The two boys exchanged glares before erupting into groans.

"What'll I do with him?" Kouji muttered, kicking the ground in front of him.

"I don't know," confessed Takuya. "And the alien thing was pure Shinya influence."

"ON TRACK, HERE." Silently, Kouji allowed his gaze to drift up to the ceiling. "It _could_ be about what Hideki was talking about. After all, he got knocked out, so maybe..."

"But it wouldn't make sense! Wait-he got knocked out?" Takuya's eyes widened. "Kanaye?" he guessed.

Kouji nodded. Nervously, he turned his eyes back to Takuya and asked, "Think we should check on Kouichi?"

"YOU THINK?"

------------------------------------

Kako opened the door to Ogata's classroom, her heart sinking as she did.

No Ogata.

No safety from Kouichi.

_Oh well,_ she thought glumly. _No one else is around, so it's not as bad._ Another thought hit her, and the girl shivered, _Okay, so maybe it _can _be that bad_. Kako sat down in her seat and lay her head down on the desk. _Maybe I can catch up on sleep?_

"Kako," a voice murmured.

"Shaddup and gimme five minutes," Kako muttered, turning her head to look out the window. _Ah...the sun...so warm_, she thought, happily closing her eyes.

Kouichi chuckled. "Didn't sleep on time, did you?"

Sighing, Kako looked up to find Kouichi sitting on his desk, facing her. A hint of amusement was made obvious in his eyes, but what she really didn't like was that he was smirking. The mischievous aura was all around him. It clung to him like a skunk's scent. Although she wasn't in the mood, Kako sat up on her own desk, facing him. "Maybe, why?" was all she said.

Leaning forward, Kouichi captured her lips in a kiss, softer than the last. Kako slowly allowed her eyes to close, opening them as it ended. She was surprised to find him so close. "Kouichi," she murmured as he pulled her closer, "why are you acting so weird...?"

In response, he kissed her again, then pulled away, slowly making his way past her lips. Feeling his breath on her neck, Kako jumped back to her senses and pushed him away. Her heart was racing with her breath, and she wasn't sure which one was faster. Trying to calm down, Kako snapped, "What's wrong with you, Kouichi? You're so...so..._clingy_!"

"Is it wrong to love you?" he asked softly.

"Yes-er, I mean no-but I liked you a lot more when you wouldn't _force_ yourself on me!"

Kouichi stared out the window. "I'm not."

"What happened yesterday?" Kako asked, her expression softening. She turned to look out the window as well, a sigh escaping her lips. "Maybe we shouldn't go out today..."

"No!" When she turned to him sharply, Kouichi shook his head and murmured, "We should. Besides, what fun would it be, training some more? I don't get to spend that much time with you as it is." _That's something the other Kouichi would say, right?_ the boy thought hopefully, forcing a gentle smile.

Kako blushed, and he knew that had done the trick. Looking out the window again, she whispered, "I suppose..."

"Which is why-" Just as Kouichi leaned forward, Kouji and Takuya dashed in, both breathing hard. A sour look on his face, the older twin turned to the two, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall behind him. "Yes?" he snapped, irritated at the interruption.

"O...Ogata...is...here today...remember?" Kouji breathed heavily, a hand on a nearby desk for support. "Y-you should...be in...Rai's...cl-...classroom."

Kouichi shrugged and replied, "I don't care."

Kako tumbled off the chair and fell to the floor in surprise. Wincing, she sat up and gazed up at Kouichi. "Are you _sure_ you aren't sick? Not dying? No high fever?" she asked, hoping he really was sick.

But Kouichi shook his head. "Nope," he replied, just as the bell rang.

Worry flooded through Kako as if she had just drowned. Horrified, she turned to Takuya and Kouji, who seemed to be experiencing something similar. Drawing a breath, Kako got up and sat back down in her seat, praying Kouichi would return to normal very soon.

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Kouichi wasn't sure how long it had been, but he had been stuck in endless darkness at least for _hours_. He wasn't hungry, he wasn't dying.

He was just bored.

_I promised Kako we'd go check out the lions today,_ he thought glumly, sitting down and sighing. _Or is it yesterday? Maybe tomorrow?_ He brought his knees up and rested his head on them, wondering how much longer it would take.

_Kouichi_. The voice echoed throughout his head. _Kouichi, listen to me_.

"I'm listening," the boy muttered, shutting his eyes.

_So, you know, then?_ _The reason Duskmon exists is tied to your soul_.

Kouichi lay back with a sigh and muttered, "Yeah, I know."

_And right now_, _that very split has caused you to be lost in your own mind?_ _Not to mention that the_..._not so nice you has taken over and I'm stuck waiting for him to finish whatever he's doing_.

His eyes shot open, wide with horror. Scrambling to his feet, the boy screamed, "WHAT?"

Nothing answered him. The voice-_his_ voice-just disappeared. Once more, Kouichi was stuck alone in the dark, alone and bored. Only now, he was too worried to be bored.

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All through class time, Ogata and Kouichi traded insults while the rest of the class wondered exactly what possessed Kouichi to come back to class while Ogata was there. The racket ended with Kouichi calling Ogata 'the most idiotic teacher from hell who aims to teach us crappy ways that will rot our brains,' and Ogata threatening to get him suspended. However amusing it was, Kako decided Kouichi was _not_ the type of person to start a riot in class.

She was incredibly relieved when he walked out of class without a care in the world. Then she became worried when he didn't come back when Rai came in. When the class was let out for lunch, Kako began to panic as Kanaye approached Kouji.

Yet for some reason, Kanaye didn't seem menacing at all. In fact, he looked as confused as the rest of them. Slamming a hand down on Kouji's desk, Kanaye asked, "What's wrong with your brother?"

"How would I know?" Kouji snapped, getting out of his seat and hauling his backpack up. "I honestly wish I knew, but it's obviously got something to do with _your_ knocking him out!" Kouji stormed out of the classroom.

Kako stood there, staring at Kanaye in surprise. Slowly, her lips formed into a smirk as Ai ran over to the boy. _I know a great way to avoid Kouichi!_ she thought happily, skipping out of class behind Kanaye.

Kanaye whirled around, attempting to push Ai away. "What are you doing, Sakai? Go bug someone e-Ai, do you _mind?_"

Kako laughed, "But this way, Kouichi won't come ten feet within distance of me!" She stood there, beaming happily at him.

"Ai, I'll meet up with you, just stop bugging me," she heard Kanaye mutter. Seconds later, Kako found herself backed up against the lockers, Kanaye's hands on either side of her. "So," he murmured, "do you think that's a great idea now?"

Reddening considerably, Kako swiftly punched Kanaye before ducking under his arm and storming off. Once she was a few feet away, the girl turned around and yelled, "Thanks for ruining my plan, JERK!" After sticking out her tongue in a childish manner, Kako stormed off.

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Kouji rested his forehead against his locker and let out a tired sigh. Turning his head slightly, he saw Kouichi by him, opening his own locker. Kouji turned his head back and mumbled, "Hey, Kouichi. You missed Biology."

"I know."

"Kako got worried."

"Did she really?"

Standing up straight, Kouji frowned at his brother. He seemed angry, and the tone in his voice seemed to have a hint of sarcasm or something else Kouji wasn't sure of. Whatever it was, the younger twin didn't like it.

Kouichi quietly shut his locker and locked it. "Where is she?" he asked, eyes focused ahead.

Unsure, Kouji looked around. He spotted Kako sulking towards them. Pointing to her, he told Kouichi, "She's coming over here. A-hey, what are you doing?"

Kouichi ignored his brother and continued to walk away. Kouji turned to Kako, utterly confused. When realization hit, Kouji stepped in front of Kako. "Ah, hey," he said, laughing nervously, "Kouichi said to meet him...uh...at the front! Yeah, at the front...and uh-" He moved to his left as Kako tried to look around him.

"Move it, Kouji!" the girl snapped. "He's over the-oh..." Kouji winced as Kako stared at Kouichi in horror. "He's not Kouichi..." she whispered in a barely audible voice. Her eyes were glued to Kouichi, who stood straight ahead of them.

Kissing Naoko.

"Kako, what the hell is wrong with that stupid idiot boyfriend of yours?" a boy snapped.

Kako winced and turned to face Fujitaka, a miserable look on her face. A sigh escaped her and she murmured, "I wish I knew, Fujita, really wish I did." Her eyes widened as the boy stomped towards Kouichi. _Oh...holy...digimon_.

Kouji turned around in disgust. "Honestly, he's not my brother. Kissing _Naoko_ when he _knows_ Fujitaka already hates him from the dance and-" He whirled back around and saw Fujitaka hit the wall. Kouichi had ducked the punch.

Furiously, Kako stormed forward, grabbed Kouichi's hand, and dragged him off to a place where she made sure no one else was looking. After double-checking, she slapped him. "WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM?" the girl screamed. "Kissing Naoko is one thing, but you _know_ Fujita hates your guts!"

"You aren't jealous?"

Kako looked up at Kouichi, confusion filling her eyes. She turned away from Kouichi, allowing her eyes to fall to the floor. Her voice was soft as she whispered, "There's really something wrong with you. I don't know what happened to you, Kouichi, but you were a lot better when you _weren't_ a total jerk to everyone. Maybe we should just not go out today-"

Again, he snapped, "No. We're going, okay?" Furious, Kouichi forced her to turn around and meet her eyes. "Are you jealous? That's all I'm asking. So tell me," he demanded, his hands on her shoulders.

Kako refused to meet his eyes. "W-well..." _Should I be?_ She was hesitant to answer. "I...I guess," confessed Kako, trying to push his hands off.

A small smile made it's way onto Kouichi's face, catching Kako's attention. He removed his hands and ruffled her hair. "So, you are just a typical girl. I'll catch you after school."

_Typical...?_ Kako stood there, immobilized by what he had said. _I'm just a typical girl_. She swallowed and looked up to see Kouichi walking away. Out of nowhere, Kouji grabbed her back and yelled, "Hey, Kouichi, so if she's just a typical girl, will you mind if I do this?" Kako felt his lips on hers for a mere second. The next instant, he was three feet away, clutching his cheek and muttering curses to himself.

The girl took several steps back, eyes glazed as if she were in a trance. "Y-you two...are...you're both ridiculous!" she screamed. "You and every other boy! You're all the same! The who knows _what_ time that I've been kissed. You're all the same, you _stupid_ perverts!" Kako stopped as she bumped into someone. She looked behind her.

Takuya stood up and rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry, Kako," he mumbled, about to walk off.

Kako screamed.

The twins winced and exchanged glances. "Look what you did," Kouichi snapped, shivering as he heard a sickening crunch.

Kouji furiously pointed to his brother and screamed, "_You_ started it! If you hadn't hurt her feelings, this wouldn't have happened!" Angrily, he ran towards his brother, ready to punch.

Kako turned around just as both boys fell to the ground, groaning and rubbing their injured jaws. Guiltily, she turned back to Takuya and sank down on her knees. "I'm _really, _really sorry, Takuya!" she apologized, wailing.

Weakly, Takuya held up a hand. "I...surrender."

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Lunch ended with a beat up Takuya and the twins in the nurse's office. Both twins iced their jaw, wincing every time Takuya screamed in pain, which happened to be very often. Eventually, the screams died down, and even though they were all better, none of them wanted to return to class.

Erika walked in to the room, folding her arms across her chest as she stared at the three boys. "Dare I ask?"

"Nope," Kouji replied, lying back down. Kouichi snorted and muttered something. Angrily, Kouji sat up and snapped, "It's _your_ fault, not mine!"

"I agree," Takuya muttered.

Kouichi shot them both a glare. "Oh really? Because if I remember, _you_ tried kissing Kako, Kouji, and that's when she went berserk!" the boy declared.

"WHAT?" Kouji exclaimed. Angrily, he sputtered, "I-well-you...in case you didn't notice, you made her feel...feel...well, for one, you were practically making out with Naoko!" To emphasize his point, Kouji stomped on the ground with one foot.

Yawning, Kouichi leaned back in his chair and muttered, "Tell me when Kouji's done spouting nonsense, will you, Takuya?"

"Hey, it _is_ your fault!" Takuya insisted.

"You, too?" Kouichi frowned and opened his eyes. "Hi, Erika. Please tell these idiots there's nothing wrong with liking a girl."

"THAT ISN'T THE GODDAMN POINT!" the bandana boy screamed, rising to his feet.

Erika turned around at the sound of footsteps at the door. Smiling, she greeted the newcomer, "Hello, Kako. Feeling sick?"

Kako blushed and shook her head. Peeking her head in the room, she murmured, "I'm here to check up on those two." She pointed to Kouji and Takuya. "And...to apologize to Takuya." Miserably, she walked in and sank down into a nearby chair, across from Kouichi. "I really am sorry, Takuya. I just..."

Kouji glared at his brother. "See?" he snapped, pointing to Kako, "It's _your_ fault!"

"It's rude to point, Kouji," the older twin replied, reaching a foot out to kick his brother, who sat by Takuya on the bed.

Rolling her eyes, Erika told them, "I'll let you guys continue to argue. _I_ have work to do. And Kako, are you _sure_ you're okay?"

"No," the girl muttered.

"Headache?"

"Yes." Kako looked at her feet quietly.

"Do you want anything?" Erika asked gently.

"Silence."

Takuya coughed slightly and replied, "Not a good place to come for that."

Kako shrugged and sighed deeply, looking away from them. Erika walked off and Kouji cleared his throat, shooting an angry glance in his twin's direction. To his surprise, however, Kouichi was already scooting his chair towards the girl.

Kouichi continued to move his chair until he was beside Kako. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. As she shut her eyes, he whispered, "Kako."

She looked tired, Kouichi realized, as she opened her eyes and turned to him.

He continued to ask, "Tired?" When she nodded, he smiled faintly. "How much sleep did you get last night?" he asked. Then, jokingly, he guessed, "An hour?"

At this point, Kako shot a glare in Kouji's direction. "Yeah, something like that," she muttered, closing her eyes again.

Takuya fell back on the bed. Suddenly, he chuckled and murmured, "Come to think of it, I slept at two last night."

"You mean this morning," Kouji corrected, pushing Takuya over. "I want my own space. Move it!" he snapped, lying down as well. "You're not the only tired one!"

Kouichi chuckled. "So go to sleep," he whispered softly, gazing up at the ceiling.

------------------------------------

"Come on, let me back out!" Kouichi begged, wishing there were something he could at least do.

Much to his surprise, he was answered.

"No," the voice murmured.

Whirling around, Kouichi found himself face to face with his own reflection. _A mirror,_ he realized, stepping forward to touch the glass. As soon as his fingertips met with the cool surface, the mirror shattered, and his reflection disappeared.

"Behind you, Kouichi," the same voice laughed.

Desperately, Kouichi turned around again, his eyes searching the empty darkness. Now frustrated, he yelled, "Please, just let me out!" A moment later, the reflection from the mirror materialized in front of him.

It's eyes were bottomless pools of pure black. There was no sign of warmth or emotion. All that could be found was black. "And why should I?" the reflection whispered angrily. "I should be the one dominant! Not hidden like some...some..."

"Something vile," Kouichi supplied. He swallowed and continued, "So I've been neglecting you for the past few years! I've tried giving you a chance, haven't I? You told me you could handle Duskmon, and then you just left me to deal with it myself! Why should I trust _you_?" He took several steps back as his other self came closer.

Then it stopped. As if confused, it looked up at the empty darkness above. A sigh escaped its lips as it murmured, "Before that, you wouldn't fear me. Maybe that's what I must do." The gaze reverted to Kouichi. "Do you really love her?" The question seemed to echo throughout the space.

_Do I really love her? Of course I love her,_ Kouichi thought, suddenly furious. "Yes, I do!" he exclaimed angrily, "So just leave her alone! I don't know what you're planning, but you better not hurt anyone! Especially Kako or Kouji!" Kouichi was about to continue, but stopped. Something seemed to change. _The reason Duskmon exists,_ he thought, shutting his eyes, _is because I can't accept my faults. I hid them all away and formed another side of me, one I bitterly resented. Is that why...I see this...person in front of me?_

Shutting his eyes, Kouichi whispered, "You have until the end of the day. I'll decide based on your performance. There are several things I _do_ want you to do for me, because I can't waste time."

A small smile formed on his reflection's face. It wasn't forced, but it wasn't natural, either. In fact, it seemed as if it was struggling to appear. "Then tell me," the other Kouichi demanded in a soft voice.

"Alright." Kouichi nodded slightly and listed, "First off, the D-Tector..."

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A/N-

Yes, one confusing point shot down with an arrow! Poor Kouichi. But I really wish that happened to me one day! I could go all evil and actually manage to properly insult the idiots at school who must be properly insulted! Too bad I don't have the guts to get into trouble. And although no one really asked any questions that gave the hint of them being completely, utterly lost and confused, but someone did have trouble keeping track of who said what. It was confusing, that part. Basically, that's why there's Kouichi one and Kouichi two. Kouichi one is also referred to as 'the first Kouichi.' I don't think I referred to Kouichi two as anything else.

If any of you know a really well-written digimon story, would you mind giving me the author/title or the link (or all of those)? After all, the best way to write a well-written story is to read one! My writing style morphed on me. Not to mention I really ought to re-read NTB2 and what I've got of NTB3. But, ahead of time, thank you!

Thank you for the reviews and such (I will send them to you tomorrow, possibly)-

**Winter's Light, Catwarrior, WithBrokenWings, PrincessYami, GemmaniGirl, Lady Hikari-Yami**

Next chapter may be up Monday. It all depends. I'm helping out with the black belt test we're having, and as if I'm not guilty enough already, I can't let my partner down. So I'm probably going to spend hours on homework, going to TKD, and I'm sick as well, which means sleeping at eight if I'm that exhausted. We have a French oral on Friday…ugh. So please, I'll attempt to get the chapter up as soon as possible! I'm really sorry, though.

PM or Review or Flame.


	10. A Lion Of Trouble

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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A Lion Of Trouble

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Kako found herself resting her head on Kouichi's shoulder. Surprised, she sat up, looking around in silent shock. After she finally calmed down, Kako realized the boys were all asleep. She looked at Takuya and Kouji. The goggle head was muttering something every few seconds, and Kouji kept rolling around.

A small sigh was emitted from Kouichi. Turning to him, Kako frowned. _He seems to be thinking a lot_, the girl realized, standing up and gazing down at him for a better look. His head turned to the side and Kako let out a giggle, leaning forward slightly. "What happened to you, Kouichi?" she whispered softly.

She stepped back as he leaned forward, knowing very well he was now awake. Smiling, she took a seat beside him and murmured, "Nice try, but it won't work."

"A boy can dream, right?" Kouichi replied.

Hesitantly, Kako looked at him from the corner of her eye. "Are you...Kouichi now?"

The reply didn't surprise her. "I always was," he murmured, leaning towards her.

Kako rolled her eyes. "School's almost out."

"Yep. Wait-I need to ask you something," Kouichi suddenly muttered, slapping his forehead. "Right..." He drew a breath and asked, "Listen, you know how our Dad gave us tickets for Hawaii, right? Kouji's going, but I'm not. Well, I don't want to waste the ticket, so would you do me a favor and go for me?"

Silence met his question.

Kouichi suddenly became worried. For one, Kako's eyes were wide open, staring at nothing in particular. Another thing was that he wasn't sure if she was breathing or not. "Kako...?" called out the boy, a hand waving in front of her face.

Finally snapping out of her trance, Kako shook her head. "I..." She began to stutter, "H-Hawaii, I, see, I'm not sure...I...well, because Hideki, and then there's that, but also th-" Falling silent as Kouichi's finger touched her lips, Kako shut her eyes.

"Please?" he asked softly.

Opening her eyes, Kako pushed his hand away. "You're the same. I don't get this. You don't make sense anymore, Kouichi."

"Just answer my question," he begged.

Kako looked to the bed where Takuya and Kouji lay, coincidentally punching each other although they weren't looking at each other. "I'd be going with Kouji?" It was more of a statement than a question, but she needed to be sure. She turned back to see Kouichi nod. A sigh escaped her and she stood up. Forcing a small smile, Kako murmured, "I'll...see if I can."

Relief flooded Kouichi as he stood up and kissed her quickly. "Thank you," he whispered. He turned his head as Kouji grumbled and rolled off the bed, then sat down back in his chair. _One task down, a lot more to go_.

A smirk returned to Kouichi's face as Kouji stood up, rubbing his pounding head. "Uh...what time is it?" the younger twin mumbled, staring up at the clock.

Kako answered quickly after noticing the look on Kouichi's face, "Yeah, we've got ten minutes." _I see he really _hasn't_ changed_...

Kouichi cut in from there: "Cool. Say...Kouji, what are you doing after school?"

"Me? Uh..." Kouji looked at the ceiling and dropped both hands to his sides. "I'm going to the arcade with Junpei," he replied somewhat slowly.

_What pocket did I put it in...? Oh, here!_ Kouichi withdrew the blue and yellow D-Tector and tossed it to the unsuspecting bandana boy. "Give that to him for me, will you?" he asked. Yet he didn't forget to add an 'or else' tone. After all, no one said he couldn't have fun while doing what he was supposed to. _Two down and...how many more to go? Oh, there's that Hideki and the stone in the sword. Not to mention explain to Mom_. _Oh, fun_.

Kouji barely caught the airborne item. Luckily, it bounced on Takuya's stomach after much fumbling, then landed harmlessly on the bed.

Takuya groaned. His hands flew to his stomach. As he sat up, he mumbled, "I'm killing whoever did that..."

"Um, sorry, I'd like the room blood-free," Erika replied, walking in. She placed her hands on her hips. "The bell's going to ring," she told them, "and I suggest you go back to class now. For one, Kako doesn't have her things, and you two..." the school nurse turned to Takuya and Kouji as she said this.

"Us two?" the goggle boy repeated.

Erika smiled, more of a smirk than a smile in actuality. "You two need to figure out what your homework is," she finished.

As soon as the soon departed, Kako felt a feeling that caused the bottom of her stomach bubble. Swallowing, she looked at Kouichi and found him smirking. _Not good,_ the girl decided, frowning in a disapproving manner. He must have seen her face, because Kouichi burst out laughing. Kako blushed and looked away.

"Come on, I'm not going to do anything!" Kouichi laughed, standing up. It was several more seconds before his laughter died down. "You should get your stuff, you know," he commented. "Kako?" She heard his footsteps close the space in between them. "Kako, stop ignoring me," murmured Kouichi in a low voice.

It was her turn to burst out laughing. Kako turned around, pointing at Kouichi. "You're so stupid sometimes!" the girl cackled, pushing her way past him.

Kouichi stood at the doorway, feeling incredibly incensed. _I'm stupid?_ He let out an angry sigh and glared at her retreating form. "I'm stupid," he muttered aloud. "I'm _stupid?_" A small smile formed. _Stupid, eh? We'll see_, he decided. _I'll get her back at the zoo_.

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"So...what are you doing, Takuya?" Kouji asked innocently.

Takuya frowned at Kouji. "Getting my bag, what does it look like?" the goggle boy snapped, picking up his backpack.

The other boy coughed. Clearing his throat, Kouji clarified his question: "What are you doing _after school_?"

At once, Takuya winced. He looked around before he replied, "Izumi's dragging me to the zoo to see that lion..." Kouji swallowed a laugh as the boy shivered. "She says it'll be..._educational_. Come on, when has seeing a lion been educational? You have to help me, Kouji!" panicked Takuya, placing both hands on Kouji's shoulders and shaking the bandana boy vigorously to emphasize his point.

Kouji shook his head from the dizziness Takuya had inflicted upon him. In a smooth movement, he brushed off the other boy's hands and took two steps back. Drawing a breath, Kouji questioned, "What's Tomoki doing?" _Please tell me..._please_, tell me_...

The bandana boy's mind did a victory dance as Takuya answered, "Today's Katsuharu and Teppei's last day in town. They wanted to see the lion, too." Before Kouji's mind could do another victory dance, Takuya frowned. "Don't tell me, Kouji..._don't_ spy on them!" he snapped, eyes narrowing into a glare.

A mere smile appeared in reply to that. Casually, Kouji stared at the D-Tector he held and declared, "Spy? Me? Never! Besides, good ol' Junpei and I are going to the arcade to settle our disputes from your house after the last mission." He pocketed the D-Tector.

"Mission?"

"Yeah." When he saw Takuya's confused look, Kouji sighed and snapped, "Spying on Kouichi!"

"EXACTLY! See, you _are_ going to do it again!"

"I am not!"

"Well, whatever. I can't really stop you. Izumi's going to be feeding me to the lions with what I'm going to go through. I won't be able to keep a straight head." A sigh escaped Takuya while they walked out of the classroom. "You know," he commented, "if I'm lucky, I'll miss her on the way out!" Now grinning, Takuya turned to Kouji.

Before he could open his mouth, however, Kouji interrupted and asked, "Is going out with Izumi so bad?" Although before the two had started going out again, Kouji could understand why Takuya would fear Izumi. He could understand a little fear now, but the way Takuya was acting made him wonder. "What, did Ranamon possess her?" he joked.

Takuya shook his head. "It's _Shinya_ that's the problem. She's forcing me to bring him along, too," moaned the goggle boy, hands flying to his head. "I have a headache just _thinking_ about it!"

"Uh, Takuya?"

"Yeah?" Takuya turned to face Kouji.

Kouji winced and pointed behind him. "Have fun..."

Takuya's eyes widened. _Damn it all,_ he thought. "H-hi Izumi," the goggle boy laughed, waving to the girl nervously.

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If there was one thing Kako was reminded of while staring at the Kouichi in front of her now, it was Duskmon.

The thought made her shiver.

It was at the twins' messed up birthday party where Duskmon had given his last order. Last _serious_ order. That being known, he had told her that she now owed him one favor. One, and that was all. As to what it was, Kako had no idea, and she didn't want to find out. But looking into Kouichi's eyes, all she could see was herself being ruined.

"Do you just want to go straight there?"

Kako snapped out of her thoughts, blinking blankly at Kouichi. "Huh?"

Kouichi tore his gaze away from the space ahead of him and shifted it to look at Kako. Slowly, he repeated, "Do...you...want...to...go...straight...there?"

"Sure..." came the unenthusiastic reply. Feeling slightly awkward, Kako became preoccupied with the ground beside her. She quickened her pace as well and commented absentmindedly, "Izumi said she's dragging Takuya and Shinya to the zoo, too..." _Hey, that's a cool rock._ Kako stopped and picked up the rock. "...and I hear Tomoki's going there with Katsuharu and Teppei. Their last day here, apparently." A sigh escaped Kako as she examined the rock. "A real pity," murmured the girl. She threw the rock back, and turned to Kouichi at the sound of a thud. Kako was just in time to see the rock bounce off of Kouichi's head onto the street. _Oops_...

Slowly, Kouichi placed a hand on the spot on his head where the rock hit, wincing slightly. When Kako stepped forward, he stopped her and shut his eyes. _Nice, Kouichi. Be _nice, he told himself, drawing several long breaths. He opened his eyes and muttered, "Why don't we hurry up?" Kako nodded and turned away, embarrassed. He felt slightly guilty, but said nothing. Instead, Kouichi stepped up to her. "Come on, you don't want to miss the lion, do you?" he murmured.

Kako was silent. "Kouichi?" she whispered in a hesitant voice.

"Yeah?"

A smile appeared on her face and Kako shook her head. Turning to Kouichi, she replied, "Nothing! Come on, hurry up!" The girl grabbed his hand and yanked it impatiently. "If I don't get to see the lion, I'll make _sure_ Hideki tortures you!"

_What would Kouichi do? Uh-TORTURE? That's my department,_ he thought, groaning aloud. When Kako burst out laughing, he pulled her back towards him and whispered, "What's so funny?" She squeaked and fell silent, causing him to laugh in turn. Kouichi released her, and Kako turned on him angrily.

"Y-you..." she growled, clenching her fists by her sides. "You better start running..."

Kouichi took her advice, but not before swiftly placing a kiss on her lips. The laughter bubbled through him (for once not forced) as Kako raced after him, swearing to painfully torture him when she got her hands on him. _I wonder,_ Kouichi thought with a smile, _how it must feel to go through this every day_...

He knew he definitely wouldn't mind.

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"Wow, I haven't been to the zoo in ages!" Kako laughed, spinning around. She stopped and turned to Kouichi, who gingerly rubbed his bruised arm. A smirk appeared out of nowhere. "_Told_ you I'd get you."

However, Kouichi was too preoccupied with his arm to hear her. _Is it bleeding? Don't tell me it's bleeding. What if I have hemophilia? No! Must...stop...being...worried! But if I push all the worry out of me, will there be something other than Duskmon and Lowemon? Ahhh...this stinks,_ he thought, sniffing. _No! Don't cry just be-_

"Kouichi!"

Kouichi looked up at the sound of his name, tears brimming in his eyes. "Y-yeah?" he sniffed.

The girl in front of him looked upon him with horrified eyes. "Do..._not_ tell me you're crying because I hit you," she murmured.

"I think I ought to explain now...he wanted me to..." Another sniff. "See, the reason Duskmon exists is because Kouichi-"

"You _are_ Kouichi, aren't you?" Kako's voice was rising by the second.

A groan escaped Kouichi's mouth. "Just _listen_," he snapped. Drawing a breath, he continued, "The reason Duskmon exists is because Kouichi can't accept himself. He pushed aside his anger and faults so he could make life easier at home. So I was created and it's my fault he's susceptible to Duskmon's possessing. If he accepted me, he'd be a lot more normal."

This caused Kako to frown. "Kouichi _is_ normal, thank you!" she snapped.

The two got caught up in a glare contest. A second later, Kako took a step back with widening eyes. A shallow breath preceded her accusation, "So all this time you, _the fake_, have been _kissing me_?" Almost immediately she reverted back to a glare.

Kouichi could only blink in confusion. "Fake?" he repeated. He frowned and corrected her, "I'm not a fake! I'm Kouichi, too!"

"I'm so confused..." Kako plopped down on a nearby bench. "When will this be over?" she groaned.

With a sigh, Kouichi sat down beside her. They were quiet for a moment, both in deep thought. Finally, Kouichi stood up. "We should hurry up and look around. I must say, Kouichi has no idea how to get a girl on a date, but at least I can correct _that_," he murmured, offering Kako a hand. When she accepted it, he smirked. "See? I'm still Kouichi."

Kako responded with a sweet smile before she yanked him forward. She stood up and triumphantly placed her hands on her hips. "That," murmured Kako, "is _definitely_ something Kouichi would have fallen for. So, I guess you're right! You are Kouichi!" She burst out laughing, turning around and dashing away quickly.

Kouichi picked himself up off the bench and turned to the direction Kako had run off in. _I'd trade with him any second, now. But I wouldn't trade with him, either. I wonder,_ he thought. _Is this how he feels?_ If there was one thing he was learning, it was that his previously dominant side still had his faults.

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"Lion!" Shinya sang. "In the jungle, the _miiiiiighty_ jungle! THE LION! THE LION!"

Takuya twitched, glaring daggers at his younger brother who hopped ahead of both Takuya and Izumi, singing nonsense. He gritted his teeth angrily. "One of these days," he muttered.

Unfortunately, Izumi had heard. There was no way she could understand why Takuya was so annoyed, save the fact that Shinya was horribly off tune and the lyrics were butchered. But even that gave no reason for him to be so irked. _I wonder if he needs time alone?_ She sighed and looked away. "Takuya," murmured Izumi, "He's just a little boy..."

"He's not little!" Takuya screamed. The surprise on Izumi's face snapped him back to his senses. Shutting his mouth, Takuya turned away and folded his arms. "Can we get this over with?" he snapped quietly.

Izumi sighed. She would just have to accept the fact that he wouldn't change. Silence dominated the two, save Shinya's singing (which subsided when he passed by the elephants) and the chatter of other visitors. Takuya suddenly sighed, a hand flying to his forehead, while the other dug itself in his pocket. Startled, Izumi turned to him. Her voice was soft as she whispered, "Takuya?" He didn't answer all at once. After waiting a while, Izumi was about to repeat herself when he dropped the hand on his forehead to his side.

Takuya turned to her, eyes soft. "Izumi, I just can't get him," he murmured. He looked helpless in her eyes; she sensed worry and fear in his eyes as they met her own. "Kouji just won't give up. He's at the arcade with Junpei, but I just know..." The boy trailed off and shifted his gaze to his brother. "Shinya! Get down from there!" He ran over to the tree Shinya had climbed up and began to yell at his brother.

"Izumi!"

Turning around, Izumi found the familiar faces of Tomoki, Katsuharu and Teppei staring back at her. A small smile lit up her face as she waved to them.

Tomoki eagerly ran forward. "Guess who I saw?" he whispered excitedly.

"Tomoki, come on, we asked you _not_ to run," Teppei groaned, trying to catch his breath.

The other boy grinned. Smiling, Katsuharu ruffled Tomoki's hair. "Ah, the joys of youth," the older boy declared.

"Katsuharu, Teppei." Izumi greeted the two other boys with a small nod. "So who did you see, Tomoki?" she asked.

The grin on Tomoki's face worried Izumi slightly, but she chose to ignore it. It seemed perfectly innocent. In a loud voice, Tomoki yelled, "Kouji and Junpei are here! And on secret business, too! They even said so!" The color on Izumi's face drained and Tomoki's face fell.

An angry Takuya rushed over to them like a bull. "Where. Is. He?"

It didn't take any more words for Tomoki to point out the direction he had seen Kouji in. Takuya stormed off in the direction Tomoki had showed him, leaving Shinya to wander over to an ashen-faced Izumi and the three confused boys. "Where's Takuya going?" the young Kanbara wondered aloud.

Katsuharu shrugged. Tomoki looked guilty, and Izumi still hadn't gotten over her shock. It was only when Teppei finally looked up that things became clear and confusing at the same time. "Hey," the boy said, adjusting his glasses. "Isn't that a digimon?"

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Kouji had honestly wanted to stay at the arcade. He loved playing the games there, as repetitive as they got. His skill could only improve against Junpei.

But he wanted to know what was wrong with Kouichi. No, he didn't _want_ to know. Kouji _had_ to know. After all, as Kouichi as stated many times before, they were brothers. And if Kouichi was in trouble, he wanted to help.

It hadn't taken long for Kouji to persuade Junpei to go to the zoo with him. As it turned out, Junpei had planned to go anyway. Then Kouji had made his plans and Junpei (reluctantly) agreed. This time was different. Junpei was _more_ than happy to agree to go to the zoo.

"See, I had to see the lion for a project I have to do. And today was the only day I could see it! Kouji, you're a real lifesaver," exclaimed Junpei happily, taking out a notebook and pen.

Kouji displayed false enthusiasm. "Yeah...I've always wanted to see that lion!" he replied. A laugh followed shortly afterward. _Who the hell cares about a lion? Where's Kouichi?_

When they saw Tomoki, Kouji panicked right away. Instead of saying he was here for Junpei's project, his tongue slipped and instead he said, "It's secret business, between me and Junpei! So just go away!" And saying that, he had dragged Junpei off as far away as possible.

Now, Kouji and Junpei were staring up at the monkey's cage, trying to spot any. What Kouji was _really_ trying to do was distract himself from the mistake he had made. Possibly look innocent if Takuya found him-that was the goal he wanted to reach. Yes, if Takuya came around, all he would do was laugh and say, 'We _were_ going to the arcade, but Junpei had homework. So why not help him, right?' Of course he'd have to make sure Junpei wasn't in the vicinity to say that Kouji had brought up going to the zoo first.

He had expected correctly. It took several minute for Takuya to storm by and recognize the regular blue bandana with brown stripes on his head. _Knew I should have changed my bandana_, he thought dismally, turning around with a fake smile as Takuya screamed his name. "Hey!" he laughed. "What's up, Takuya?"

Takuya had a murderous glint in his eyes. Stomping (literally) towards Kouji, the goggle boy barked, "Don't '_What's up, Takuya_' me! What the hell do you think you're doing here?" Steam practically floated out his ears.

Kouji gulped and looked at Junpei, who was watching a monkey he had just found hidden among a tree. _Now's the time to use that great plan, Kouji_, thought the boy, shooting Junpei a look before dragging Takuya a few feet away. He lowered a voice into a whisper, "See, Junpei had homework, and he needed to see the lion for that. And, really! He made these plans _before_ I asked him if he wanted to come to the arcade. So I felt bad and said it was okay." Kouji held his breath as he waited for Takuya's response, _praying_ his lie had worked.

But the goggle boy's murderous glare only intensified. "DO NOT LIE TO ME, KOUJI MINAMOTO! STOP TRYING TO STALK YOUR BROTHER!" screamed Takuya, hands shooting out to strangle Kouji.

Letting out a yelp, Kouji ducked Takuya's hands and began racing around a nearby bench, stopping when Takuya was across from him. Takuya started towards his right, and Kouji ran to his left, still circling the bench. When they were across from each other again, Takuya emitted a low growl before jumping up on the bench and leaping off, aiming to land on Kouji.

He very nearly did. Kouji ended up grabbing the person behind him and pushing them forward to protect himself.

It was only then he realized _exactly_ who that person was. Although he was thankful it wasn't Kouichi, he might have preferred it to be Kouichi. Swallowing as Takuya groaned and stood up, rubbing his head, Kouji edged away from the fallen person.

Takuya noticed who lay on the ground and shot Kouji a glare. A loud snort escaped the goggle boy. "Way to go," he snapped in an accusing voice. "I never knew you had it in you to murder _Hideki_."

"I didn't!" insisted Kouji. He glared furiously at the goggle boy. "If you hadn't tried to kill me, you wouldn't have jumped on Hideki, and he wouldn't be dead!"

Takuya raised his voice slightly as he countered, "Oh, sure, blame it on me. All I did was warn you that you shouldn't come here! AND YOU CAME HERE, IDIOT! It's _your_ fault!" To emphasize this last sentence, Takuya raised his foot up and stomped it down in front of him. Unfortunately, that was where Hideki was.

A yelp flew out of Hideki's mouth as he rolled onto his stomach and pushed himself up. "Where's that stupid digimon?" he muttered. One hand was on his forehead, rubbing it to relieve himself of the pain of the fall. "And who the hell pushed me down?"

Kouji and Takuya exchanged wide-eyed looks before pointing to one another. "It's _your_ fault!" they screamed at each other.

"Hey Takuya, what are you doing here?" Takuya and Kouji turned to find Junpei in a cheerful mood, notebook in hand. "Man, those monkeys were great!" he laughed.

Looking sour, Kouji turned to Takuya and said casually, "Yeah, your cousins seem to be amusing Junpei, Takuya. Why don't you go _JOIN THEM_?"

The murderous look returned. Takuya smoothly walked up to Hideki. "Oh, well it seems your partner in crime is right here. Why don't you go _JOIN HIM_?" Takuya barked.

"That was lame!"

"Quite fitting towards a _lame_ as-"

"SHUT UP, BOTH OF YOU!" thundered Hideki. Silent shock shut Kouji and Takuya up. They turned to Hideki. "Now," Hideki muttered, "two things; where's that damn Piximon and where are the twerp and Kako?" He sat down on the bench, grumbling.

Kouji and Takuya walked (more like ran) over to Hideki, both glaring.

"Who's Piximon?" Takuya snapped.

The bandana boy pushed him out of the way. "_You're_ looking for Kako and Kouichi too?" he asked dubiously.

"WHO IS PIXIMON?" screamed Takuya, commencing a shoulder fight with Kouji.

"Who said my name?" exclaimed the pink digimon, flying over and landing on the bench beside Hideki. "Hideki, who are they?" Piximon inquired, pointing to Junpei and Takuya with his staff.

Hideki looked at the three boys in front of him. Pointing to a clueless Junpei, he told the digimon, "Junpei." He then turned to the two boys who were shouldering each other. "You know twerp two already. The goggle head is Takuya," said Hideki, leaning back and lacing his fingers behind his head.

Piximon studied the boys for a while before he floated up. "I saw Kako and her boyfriend!" he told the young man eagerly.

A small smile appeared on Hideki's face. "Did you, now?"

The answer came quickly, "Yup, yup! And I saw your friends, too!" As he said the last few words, he turned to Takuya and Kouji who both lay on the floor, panting.

"Oh...right," Takuya mumbled, rising to his feet. "Izumi's here..." He let out a small sigh and looked at the ground.

Kouji glared at Takuya. "I'm remembering the penguin suit Monday," he declared.

Takuya let out a small sigh. "Whatever," mumbled the goggle boy.

Realization hit Kouji. Slowly, the bandana boy broke into a grin. "Ahh...this is about Shinya, isn't it?" When Takuya turned away and grumbled, Kouji burst out laughing.

"So more of your friends are here," Hideki mused, scratching his head thoughtfully. _There must be something I can do._ He grinned. "When are they coming over here, Piximon?"

Piximon absentmindedly shifted his staff over to his other hand. "About...now!" he replied firmly.

His guess was correct. "Takuya!" Izumi yelled, running over with Shinya, Tomoki, Katsuharu and Teppei behind her. She stopped at the bench, a small frown on her face as she faced the goggle boy. Her gaze then darted to Kouji and Hideki. Furiously, she placed her hands on her hips. "Why can't you two leave Kouichi and Kako alone?" she demanded.

Hideki ignored her question. "So, this is what I propose. As I currently don't trust Kouichi's state of mind at the moment, we'll split up into groups of two to look for them!" he told them all. "And this is how I propose we do it! Izumi, you go with Piximon. Takuya, with your brother, Tomoki, you go with...uh...him!" At this point, Hideki pointed to Katsuharu, who nodded. "Great. Junpei, you go with the guy next to who Tomoki's going with-"

"_TEPPEI_," everyone else yelled.

Sheepishly, Hideki laughed, "Right, right...and that leaves-err...me to go with the second twerp. Our goal will be to find Kouichi and Kako and make sure they don't do anything inappropriate!"

Izumi's gaze hardened. "HIDEKI," she snapped.

"What?" whined Hideki. "Kouichi could _do_ something!"

"SO LET'S GET MOVING!" Kouji yelled, pushing everyone off in the direction they should go. When everyone left, he turned to Hideki. "Get up, old man. We're losing time!" he snapped.

Hideki forced a smile. "Oh, one of these days...I'll take that bandana on your head and suffocate you with it," he growled.

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Takuya stared at Shinya. The younger boy pressed his hands against a birdcage, trying to spot the birds. If Junpei had thought it hard to spot monkeys, it was even harder to find the birds.

"Takuya, can you see any here? I can't find _one!_" the boy complained, tugging on his older brother's sleeve.

Takuya remained silent and kept walking. Shinya tugged on his sleeve again, harder. "Takuya!" his younger brother now yelled.

He was about to yank again when Takuya brushed him off. Shinya stumbled back, utterly confused. A furious gaze formed and he snapped, "FINE! I'm going this way!"

The other boy did his best to pay no heed, but found it impossible. _Damn older brother instincts_, he thought to himself miserably, slowly changing his course to turn right, as Shinya had. Takuya maintained a few feet of distance, making sure to change his pace with Shinya's.

Shinya noticed this and began to slow down considerably, barely taking one step for an entire minute. Much to his annoyance, Takuya stood there watching him. Angrily, the young boy turned around. "Stop following me!" yelled Shinya, breaking into a run.

With a sigh, Takuya lightly jogged after his brother, following him over the fence. _Idiot_, he thought. _If we get caught I'm making _sure_ he can't play videogames for a month_. He stopped when Shinya did, at an open door. Another sigh was emitted from the goggle boy. "Shinya!" he yelled.

The younger boy was furious. He flung the door open and screamed, "Go away!" The next thing Takuya knew, Shinya disappeared into the dark room.

Takuya kicked the ground in front of him and swore aloud as he followed his brother. _That stupid, stupid kid,_ he thought angrily. _When I get my hands on him_...

It was more like _if_ he got his hands on him.

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Kako sighed and leaned against Kouichi. She was utterly tired. "How long have we been waiting?" she groaned.

Kouichi shrugged, his eyes glued to the cage for any sign of the lion. He yawned and stretched his hands in the air, letting them fall around Kako. She looked up to glare at him and he chuckled. "If you're that tired," he whispered, "we could just go home."

"Shush," the girl snapped. "I intend to see the lion, got it?"

"SHINYA GET BACK HERE, NOW!"

Kako and Kouichi looked around, trying to locate the speaker of the voice.

A loud wail answered, "No! I'm telling Mom!" Shinya came into view.

Eyes widened and jaws dropped. Kako covered her mouth, trying not to scream. The boy beside her silently cursed under his breath. Aloud, Kouichi cleared his throat and yelled, "Takuya. Shinya!"

Takuya had grabbed his brother by the collar. He stood on a sandy ledge, a few feet above the ground. "Yeah?" he asked, switching his gaze to look at Kouichi. Suddenly, he frowned and asked, "H-hey...Kouichi, why is there..." Takuya trailed off and dropped his brother down. "Don't tell me," he whispered in a barely audible voice.

Kouichi slipped his eyes shut. "Takuya," he murmured. The boy completely ignored the voices of the startled crowd behind him. "Takuya," he repeated, "you're _in the cage_."

Groaning, Takuya fell to the floor on his knees, hanging his head. He shot a weak look at Shinya, who stared at him angrily. A sigh escaped the goggle boy as he asked in an exasperated voice, "Were you planning to make us the lion's _lunch_?" Shinya folded his arms across his chest angrily and didn't answer

"Well you are now!" Kako declared, pointing to behind them. "Takuya, the lion's coming in!" There was a small hint of fear in her voice. Slowly, she hid behind Kouichi, slightly peeking from behind his shoulder.

Takuya stood up, eyes wide. He turned around just in time to catch a male lion staring at him. Slowly, Takuya pulled Shinya up to his feet. The goggle boy drew a breath and murmured, "If we ever live, Shinya, _no_ videogames for a _year_."

A squeak escaped Shinya as the lion stepped forward. "Who cares about that?" he whispered. "HEEEEEEEEEEELP!"

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A/N-

I'm...not exactly happy with the chapter. Let's just say while sick, I seem to get an immense case of writer's block, and not even playing videogames seems to be interesting. So there was a great lack of interest in writing this, and it was forced a lot. But I promised a chapter Monday, and I wanted to finish the lion part, but it's about seventeen pages on word. For once, I have not posted a short chapter after a long time of not posting.

Furthermore, I'm sorry, but I won't be updating until probably...next Monday or even next Thursday. I'm falling behind a lot, and I'm sure other people don't have time to read all I post (as I post so fast). Think of it as a catch up for you and a catch up for me! But I promise chapter eleven _will_ be up before or on next Thursday.

**Thank you for the reviews, all of you. Unfortunately, I'm out of time and can't list you all down. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.**

PM or Review or Flame.


	11. Maze

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Maze

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Izumi stared at the round pink digimon who began to hum happily while floating beside her. "Piximon," she said hesitantly, "won't it be kind of strange if you do that? If you'd let me carry you, people wouldn't think you-"

"Let them think!" Piximon interrupted happily. "Hey look! Kako's up ahead!" Before Izumi could stop him, the digimon flew up ahead.

The girl sighed and quickened her pace, only feet behind. A familiar yell met her ears and she broke into a run, catching up to Piximon, who had stopped beside Kako and Kouichi. "What's going on?" Izumi asked fearfully.

Kako turned around and whimpered, "Takuya and Shinya are in there..."

Everything seemed to slow down for Izumi. Her vision blurred; white spots appeared to distort the picture. Slowly, she sank down to the floor, the last thing in her vision being Takuya pushing Shinya behind him.

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Kako began to panic.

One, Izumi was unconscious. As to why, she had no clue, making the girl worry all the more. Two, Piximon was flying around carelessly in public. He didn't attract any attention away from Takuya, however, and for that she was thankful. Three, Kouichi seemed to be completely out of it, and four, Takuya was stuck in a cage with a lion and his brother.

"Takuya, this isn't working!" Shinya wailed, clutching tightly onto his brother's arm. He began to shake it viciously. "I'm too young to die!"

"IF YOU'RE YOUNG, I'M YOUNGER!" Takuya snapped. "SHUT UP AND LET ME THINK!"

Shinya's eyes suddenly brightened. "You can digivolve!" he suggested.

A sigh escaped Takuya and he confessed, "I left it at home. I never really thought going to the zoo would be that much trouble." Thoughtfully, he turned his head and called out, "Kouichi! Do you have your D-Tector?"

Kouichi slipped a hand into his pockets, turning them over as he did. A troubled look overcame his face. "Nothing," he yelled back. _Thank goodness I told Kouji to give Junpei his D-Tector_. _They've got to be around here stalking us_.

Nervously, Kako turned to Piximon. "Can you do anything?" she asked, a hint of hope in her voice.

After studying the situation before him, Piximon replied, "I could probably lead the lion away. That is, if he has interest in flying pink, round, out of this world things." Before anyone could stop him, Piximon flew through the bars and between Takuya and the lion. "Oh, Mr. Lion! Mind following me? I'm sure there's something to eat around here!" sang the digimon.

Kako's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. "HE'S USING HIMSELF FOR BAIT?" she screamed, hands grabbing the metal bars viciously. "GET BACK HERE PIXIMON!"

If Takuya was a riot, Piximon was worse. The murmurs and gasps from the crowd grew louder in volume. They began to point and scream-several fainted at the unbelievable sight. Piximon flew around wildly in front of the lion, maintaining his space from Takuya and Shinya, but also making sure he didn't fly straight into the lion's jaws. He held his staff out in front of him, slowly managing to lead the lion away from the brothers.

"PIXIMON YOU STUPID---" Kako stopped yelling when Kouichi clamped a hand over her mouth, but furiously tried to scream. Upon regaining her self-control, she pushed away Kouichi's hand and looked at Takuya and Shinya and inquired, "Can you two squeeze in through the bars?"

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"We _have_ to find Piximon," begged the girl, grabbing Kouichi's hand.

Kouichi yanked his hand away. "You _aren't_ going in there. Piximon can fend for himself. Don't worry."

A terrified look replaced the misery on Kako's face as she screamed, "HE COULD HAVE COME OUT HOURS AGO! WHAT IF THE LION ATE HIM? I'LL BE DOOMED!" She turned away from Kouichi and began to watch the empty cage where the lion once was. "Come on, Piximon..."

"Kako, get _real_. He's probably...uh...talking to the lion."

"Why is Piximon so special, anyway?" Takuya groaned, rubbing his stomach. He had managed to squeeze through the bars, though it had been incredibly painful to do so. Jealously, he turned to his brother, who, due to his small frame, was completely fine. Turning back to the unconscious Izumi, Takuya sighed, "And when's she going to wake up?"

Wiping her eyes, Kako replied, "Mr. Saito gave him to me! And no one was supposed to see him!" The girl let out a sigh and hung her head, hands gripping onto the bars tightly.

"Mr. Saito...?" Takuya repeated. His look of confusion turned to one of amusement. "Oh, I get it!" he laughed, stretching a bit.

Kako whirled around to face him. Immediately, she questioned, "Get what?" Her eyes were narrowed on the goggle boy suspiciously, as a cop would do while interrogating the suspect.

That was when Takuya realized he had said too much. _Hideki's going to murder me_, he thought, gulping. _And if I don't tell Kako, _she's_ going to murder me!_ It took several seconds for Takuya to answer, as he was weighing out whom it would be more torturous to be killed by. Finally deciding Kako was worse than Hideki, he yelled, "BECAUSE SAITO IS-" At this point, he stopped and lowered his voice into a bare whisper. "Hideki told us Mr. Saito's your dad," Takuya mumbled.

If Kako was having a heart attack, Kouichi was having a larger one. _HIM? _He's _Marise? But that makes no sense!_ He sent Kako a hesitant look, but found she was laughing. "K-Kako...?" _Don't tell me she isn't taking this seriously_...

She wasn't. Kako kept laughing until she managed to gasp out, "Oh, that's a good one. Hideki was probably lying. Why would he tell _you_ and not tell _me_ first?" She continued to laugh before turning back to wait for Piximon to come out.

Takuya's jaw had dropped, Kouichi could see, and he didn't quite blame the goggle boy, either. He supposed Kako was Kako and she wouldn't be moved from her ideas. _Too bad it's going to hit her sooner or later_, he thought. "Where are the rest of you guys?" Kouichi asked Takuya, whacking Shinya away. The little boy had grown bored and was apparently amusing himself by stomping on people's toes, mainly Takuya's.

"We split up."

Kouichi rolled his eyes. "Typical," he declared. "Answer honestly-don't you guys have anything better to do than bug us?" The boy leaning against the area beside Kako.

Takuya shrugged. "Izumi, Shinya and I came to see the lion. So did Katsuharu, Tomoki and Teppei. Hideki and Piximon...well...you know their reason. And Kouji's is obvious, too. But Junpei came here for the lion, too, and that's how Kouji tricked him," explained the goggle boy, absentmindedly hitting his brother's arm.

Shinya scowled, "You two are no fun! Even Kouji's better!" Angrily he stormed over besides Kako and stood there, not bothering to talk or look at anyone.

"Thank digimon," Takuya muttered, casting his brother an annoyed glare, "I never thought he'd shut up."

In response, Kouichi allowed his gaze to slowly drift towards the clouds. They seemed so free, without a care-nothing to worry about. _Is that why the clouds are up and not down? Or rather why we're shot down by the laws of gravity._ He sighed and shut his eyes, twitching a minute later when a loud yell for mercy split the air, startling the remaining crowd in front of the lion's cage. The rest had gone to get help, and the remaining had stayed, waiting tirelessly for the lion. Now they, too, went to get a park personnel.

Groaning, Takuya rose to his feet, stretching his aching muscles. "That was Junpei?" Kouichi nodded and he asked, "Should we help?"

"Kouji should have given him his D-Tector," Kouichi replied mercilessly, grabbing a hold of Kako's arm when she tried to run off to find out who was screaming. The goggle boy took a seat with a sigh. "Kako, don't scream! It won't hurt for him to digivolve," added the boy, using his other hand to cover Kako's mouth.

While Kako and Kouichi engaged in a small scuffle, Takuya wondered if Junpei would be alright. Moreover, he wondered if Kouji had remembered to give Junpei his D-Tector. Sooner or later, he decided, they would figure out. _Why not relax while I can?_ Takuya allowed a small smile to creep onto his face as he took a look at Izumi. He would have fun reminding her about this for a long time to come.

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Junpei and Teppei had a chance run in with Katsuharu and Tomoki while looking for Kako and Kouichi. Junpei had insisted that they go straight for the lion (mainly so he could do his homework), claiming that was the only reason Kouichi would have come, and was where they would go (knowing nothing about Kouichi's current problem).

Teppei insisted they follow the direction Takuya and Shinya had gone off in, claiming that they looked particularly murderous. Although Junpei agreed, he _really_ wanted to do his homework. That was a rare occasion and one he cared too little for to celebrate.

Upon running into Tomoki and Katsuharu, the four boys wandered around for mere seconds before hearing two things; a loud roar and a frantic scream for help. Piximon had flown over a fence, straight into Tomoki. "He's gonna eat me!" the digimon panicked.

That was when the lion had managed to bring a large portion of the wire fence down. Junpei's eyes widened considerably. "You? He's going to eat _us_!" the boy screamed.

Which brought them to now. The lion was slowly approached the four boys. The rest of the visitors had fled, screaming loudly. Yet the lion remained, eyes glued on the four boys.

"Is this because of Piximon?" Katsuharu suddenly wondered, grabbing a hold of the pink digimon and running a few yards away. Sharply, the lion turned in that direction, taking a few steps forward. Katsuharu ran back to the group, frightened for his life. "He's out to get us," murmured the boy in amazement.

Tomoki was the next to experiment, cautiously backing away from the other three boys and the digimon. He could feel the lion's eyes on him, but saw no change in movement. Its body was full facing towards Piximon. Defeated, Tomoki walked back to the others, shaking his head. "Piximon," he murmured, "I think it wants to either _eat_ you or _play_ with you..."

"I'm no toy!" the digimon cried indignantly. A loud roar erupted from the lion. "And I'm not food either!" he shouted loudly.

This was when Junpei completely lost his mind. As to why he did so was beyond anyone's comprehension, but Junpei let out a loud, long scream that only died down when Katsuharu neatly smacked him on the head. After this, he let out a choked sob and declared, "I'm too young to die!"

Teppei took off his glasses and wiped his eyes, snapping, "S-stop...you're getting to us!"

With an annoyed sigh, Katsuharu elbowed Teppei. "Quit you two," he ordered. "You're letting the situation get to you a bit _too_ much." Returning his gaze to the lion, Katsuharu asked, "Can any of you digivolve?" There was an awkward silence. When no one answered, he cleared his throat and was about to ask again when Tomoki tapped his shoulder. Questioningly, Katsuharu turned to the younger boy.

"As of now we've only got two people who can digivolve, neither of who happen to be here," Tomoki reported. A faltering smile appeared on his face and he shrugged when Katsuharu opened his mouth. "Who knows if they'll come. I kind of doubt they can find us. And it's risky," he added.

Katsuharu sighed and stared at the lion. "Then we've got no choice." Turning to Junpei and Teppei, he announced, "We've got to wait for help. I doubt Piximon can duke it out with the lion and we can't do much either. So we'll stare it down and hope it was recently fed."

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"That's a stupid way to go. Why would Kouichi go there?"

"It's not where the twerp would go, it's where _Kako_ would go that matters! A guy's got to be courteous. Maybe _that's_ why you don't have a girlfriend."

"Hah, what about you? Pining after someone who doesn't give a damn about you!"

"You're a twerp. What would you know?"

Hideki and Kouji continued to argue as they absentmindedly made their way around the zoo and pointed towards possible ways where their siblings could have gone.

Snorting, Kouji dug his hands into his pockets, hitting an item he had apparently forgotten. As a mob of people rushed towards them, screaming, Kouji realized what he had forgotten to do. Wide eyed, he turned to Hideki and uttered, "Junpei."

"What, he's in trouble?" Hideki asked, suddenly concerned. _Did I get us into that much trouble?_

Kouji shook his head. "I don't know! I have his D-Tector and Kouichi told me to give it to him but I was so caught up on stalking Kouichi that I completely forgot to give it to him and Kouichi's going to kill me but it isn't my fault because I didn't think we'd get split u-"

"Stop running off!" Hideki snapped. "That was one of the longest run on sentences I've heard. Only Kako's worse..." The young man trailed off, barely stepping to the side as a group of children came running towards his direction. "What the hell is going on?" he demanded, grabbing hold of a passerby. "Hey, what-"

A slap answered his question. Kouji snickered as the girl furiously dashed off. Determined to best Hideki, he stepped in front of a lady and politely inquired, "Excuse me, but what's going on back there?" He practically laughed, noticing Hideki shooting him an annoyed look.

"The lion got loose!" she told him, pushing him forward slightly. "I would get moving if I were you, boy!"

Kouji quickly thanked her and made his way to the grumpy Hideki. The two exchanged glares before Kouji made his way against the crowd. "If I'm right, either Junpei or Takuya are up ahead," he yelled back to Hideki, knowing perfectly well that Hideki was following him.

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Kouichi felt as if he was slowly freezing. His fingers felt numb. Shuddering, he sat down on the floorless space and pulled his knees towards him, trying to keep warm.

"Cold, isn't it?"

"Go away," he muttered, trying to clear his head. Was he doubting himself? Obviously. But he had given himself a chance, and he had to stop doubting. _Will Duskmon disappear after this_? he wondered, suddenly overcome with a twinge of regret.

The voice chuckled. "So just go against your word, Kouichi," it told him. "You've done it before." There were footsteps that echoed from nowhere. He couldn't tell where. He didn't care where, either.

It occurred to Kouichi many times before that he ought to give himself a chance. But after Duskmon, he couldn't bear it. He feared himself and locked himself up. Many regrets resulted from that, and he grew to despise himself. He envied others. How innocent they seemed, positively happy, normal. No hidden faults. Their faults were as visible as they themselves were. And more and more, each day, Kouichi would hide himself away, thinking he, too, could be normal.

Every time he let himself slip out, he feared what would happen. _Maybe_, he realized, _Duskmon's not the evil one. Maybe I'm the cause of his torment, and he's not the cause of mine_. This thought Kouichi found to make much sense.

"Don't be ridiculous. Why would you be hurting Duskmon? He's got no feelings."

_Ignorance_. _Am I really like that?_ Kouichi began to wonder which side of him really had more faults. Was it his 'perfect' side or his 'faulty' side? He shut his eyes and drew a breath. "Regrets last a lifetime. There's no way to live a life completely without regrets, but I'll make sure to have as little as possible from now on. I'll _start_ by _ignoring_ _you_," he declared aloud, praying with all his mind that things went perfectly.

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Junpei drew a breath as the lion finally sat down to watch them. He didn't want to let it out, but he had to; it didn't seem reasonable to hold it. And today wasn't the day he wanted to die because he didn't want to breath. Slowly, through pursed lips, he let the air out, hoping the lion wouldn't jump.

Much to his delight, the lion just sat there, many feet directly across from Piximon, who had apparently fallen asleep. Junpei happily took out his notebook and began to make observations on the lion, writing down everything in sight. Finally, the 'A' he had been hoping for had come. _Blitzmon, look at me, blitzing away!_

_Horrible pun, Junpei_, came the response.

Junpei made a face. "And you could do much better, Blitzmon?" he asked aloud.

Blitzmon snorted, "Exactly _what_ are you blitzing?" He stood a few feet to the side of Junpei, eyeing the lion warily.

"Hey, Blitzmon could get some help!" Tomoki realized. Beaming, the young boy turned to Blitzmon. He hadn't expected to be shot down, but became slightly desperate when the digimon shook his head and demanded, "But why?"

The digimon scowled, "Don't you know?" Tomoki shook his head and Blitzmon explained, "They say animals have quite keen vision. Even if it hasn't been to the Digital World, it probably still sees me. Oh, and I _have_ discovered neither Kouichi nor Takuya have their D-Tectors, but that was before coming here. Izumi's unconscious as well."

"WHAT?" Junpei screamed, jumping to his feet. The lion, which had it's eyes closed was now wide-eyed and alert. Self-conscious of his mistake, Junpei clamped his mouth shut and sat back down to continue to write.

Katsuharu fanned himself. Shifting his position to be more comfortable, he declared, "If we get eaten, I'm sending Junpei a one-way ticket to hell for sure. Maybe the trip there will scare him back to his senses."

"You guys sure got yourselves in a mess!"

The boys turned their head to see a hysteric Hideki and a surprised Kouji.

"Bandana head!" Junpei cried out happily. "I've never been happier to see you!" He was about to jump to his feet when the lion let out a roar, startling everyone. Only Junpei screamed, falling back down on his bottom.

Teppei winced at the volume, plugging his ears with his hands. "Could you get any louder?" the boy grumbled.

Kouji withdrew the D-Tector and with all his might, threw it in Junpei's direction. "Digivolve, would you?" he yelled as he did. When Hideki gaped at him, Kouji returned a look of confusion and questioned, "What?"

Doing his best not to scream, Hideki hissed, "What if the D-Tector falls on the ground? And breaks?" His voice grew louder with each verbal attack.

Returning his gaze to the D-Tector, Kouji could only hope. He pushed Hideki's voice out of his head and watched as the D-Tector, almost in slow motion, made its way to the ground a few feet away from Junpei. Junpei jumped to his feet, running for his D-Tector to catch it in time. _Catch it_, Kouji thought, holding his breath as Junpei fingered the item. _Almost_...

"Got it!" Junpei yelled happily. He looked back at the lion and hastily made his way back to the other boys. "Hey Kouji!" he yelled. "What am I supposed to do with this?" It was a valid question. The lion wasn't a digimon, and nothing gave him the right to harm it.

Hideki answered him, yelling back, "Wrestle it or something! Piximon can show you where to make it go. And then seal the door shut!" He turned around at the sound of footsteps and looked back at Junpei, who was still staring at his D-Tector. "But do it fast! There are people coming!" he urged the boy.

Junpei's eyes widened as he realized what he was about to do.

Digivolve.

The feeling seemed brand new all over again. Smiling, Junpei gazed fondly at the D-Tector in his hand. "Spirit Evolution."

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"You're idiots, every single one of you! Why can't you just avoid all of this by _not_ stalking me or interfering in my life in any way?" Kouichi yelled as they all walked to the exit of the zoo.

Junpei had managed to wrestle the lion back in its cage and partially seal the door before the zoo personnel came running over. Everyone else had met up in front of the lion's cage. It was about that time when Izumi had finally woken up. After going through a thorough tirade with Takuya and Shinya, Izumi told everyone that if they ever mentioned her fainting, she would make sure that once she got her D-Tector, they'd feel immense pain. Kouji completely ignored what everyone told him and Junpei continued to stare at the lion, taking notes whenever applicable. A large crowd had gathered where they were having forgotten the earlier incident.

Impatiently, Kouichi turned to Hideki. "And what were _you_ doing here?" the boy snapped.

Hideki shrugged and replied, "I don't really have any reason to trust you, especially with your state earlier this day."

Kako, who was holding Piximon tightly in her arms, suddenly whirled around to face Kouichi. "W-wait...what was up with that? And...why do you look normal now?"

Kouichi scowled. "I was always normal!" he insisted, looking away from the eleven skeptical faces. _If not, I am now_.

"Right, right, whatever. Say, Kouichi, Kanaye beat you up before you went weird, right? That's what Kouji told me when we were arguing along the way," Hideki commented, pulling out his keys from his pocket. "So do you mind telling me-"

The answer came instantly as if it was a practiced reflex. "A black jewel in the hilt," Kouichi told him quickly, "and I would have told you earlier, but one, some..._personal_ issues came up and two, you weren't around."

Hideki smiled. Chuckling, he shut his eyes. "Ah, so you fixed it?" he asked Kouichi.

"I'm trying."

Opening his eyes, Hideki clapped Kouichi on the back and said, "That won't excuse you from training, I'm afraid! We'll have an extra long lesson...tomorrow!" Noting Kouichi turned pale, Hideki burst out laughing and turned to his sister. "Come on, unless you want me to prevent you from going on anymore failed dates."

Kouichi shut his eyes and drew a shaky breath. It had been minutes since he had regained control of himself, bringing both sides of him together. He had forced it, and it wouldn't last long. There was only so much one could control. In time he knew it would come apart, but it would do for now. "Kako!" he called out. She turned around in surprise, remaining calm. "Just...consider it, okay?"

The girl opened her mouth, about to shout something back. Her eyes slipped shut and so did her mouth. A quick nod answered Kouichi, and Kako turned back around, racing after her brother, letting go of Piximon and allowing him to fly beside her.

"You know, it looks like she's Link and has a fairy!" Shinya commented.

Scowling, Takuya snapped, "Are videogames all you think about?" When Shinya nodded, he threw his hands up in the air. "I give up!" he yelled in defeat.

Shinya snickered and sent a mischievous look in the direction of Kouji and Junpei, both of which returned a thumbs-up sign. Izumi noticed this and shook her head. "Takuya, you're losing your head for no reason. He's younger than you. And don't tell me _you_ weren't like this!" she told him, her voice stern as she said the last sentence.

The sheepish Takuya looked away in response, pointing up at the darkening sky. "Well, whaddya know!" he laughed, "It's probably about dinner time! Come on, Shinya, we have to go home!"

Everyone fell silent, watching as Shinya tripped and bumped into his brother and the two Kanbaras began to fight. Kouji sent his twin a quick glance, wondering exactly what he was thinking. Kouichi's eyes were shut, but he seemed to know exactly where he was going. A second later, they opened and he turned to his left, gazing up at the sky. "Kouji, come on, we should go," the older twin whispered softly, not bothering to wait for Kouji as he walked off.

There were no good-bye's, no sounds at all as everyone fell silent, even Takuya and Shinya. Kouji turned to them, a slight frown on his face. "You think," he told them, "I'm trying to ruin his life. Just wait and see. Let's see your judgment then." And the bandana boy ran off to catch up with Kouichi, not waiting for any of their responses.

"Methinks he be not content," Junpei said aloud in a solemn voice.

Katsuharu suddenly snorted. One could tell he was still upset about the lion. "Methinks that thou art an-"

"Katsuharu," Tomoki groaned.

Somewhat reluctantly, Katsuharu grumbled and shut his mouth. Shortly after, everyone else burst into laughter, not because of the comedy of the moment, but because they were compelled to, much as one would look over their shoulder when walking alone. But that one thought lingered in their minds, making them wonder just what was going on and if they truly grasped the importance of the situation.

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Kouichi walked silently beside his brother, eyes glued ahead of him. They had been silent for most of the way, but now he felt as if there was too much he held back. Without warning, Kouichi told Kouji, "I asked Kako to go to Hawaii." He turned to his brother with frantic eyes, unsure of the effect it would produce.

Silently, Kouji looked away from his brother. His heart was hammering in his chest, and he wasn't sure if he had heard properly. Swallowing, he asked, "So...you're going?"

"N-no...I asked her to take my ticket." Kouji said nothing, and the older twin looked at the ground and tried to comprehend what he was feeling. "Y-you see," he murmured quietly and quickly, "I couldn't figure out what to do with the ticket, and it wouldn't hurt would it? And about earlier today, I'm sorry. I just don't understand why I couldn't control myself, but that other side-I-"

"I know," Kouji interrupted, gazing at his brother. "I know. Hideki told us everything. I think you and Kako are probably the least informed of us all right now." A wry smile played on his lips. "Kind of strange that you two are probably the most important part of this all," he added thoughtfully.

The other boy fell silent. After a few seconds, he asked, "So you knew, then? About Duskmon, the other me...everything?" There was an edge to his voice and Kouichi knew exactly how he sounded. Bitter, angry, violent-maybe this was why he couldn't control Duskmon. "Just how much _do_ you all know?" he inquired curiously.

Again, Kouji had that smile on. "A lot more than we bargained for."

They reached the doorstep of their house when Kouichi asked, staring up at the now starry sky, "Do you ever get the feeling that we're in a maze?"

'_Samayoeru kokoro DOA wo sagashiteru  
Koe ni naranai koe naze? to kurikaesu_'

'_Kinou ni karanda kono yubi ga hanarenai  
Amai maboroshi wo ima mo shinjitsuzukeru_'

"A maze?" Kouji repeated. "Well...no." He seemed to answer quickly.

'_Save me kono meiro kara  
Tsunagareta yami kara  
Hayaku dashite yobimodoshite  
Show_ _me_ _mou_ _ichido dake  
Torimodoshitai_ _kara  
Miushinatta_ _hontou no watashi  
Mitsukedashite_ _yo_'

Kouichi looked down, somewhat disappointed when Kouji admitted, "I don't feel like we're _all_ in a maze. But it's just that...sometimes, when I want to know someone, I feel like I have to go through this maze just to find out. They don't want me to find them, but I feel like they'll be hurt if I don't." He inhaled slowly.

'_Tozasareta mune no_ _kagi wo sagashiteru  
Anata no sono kehai_ _chan to kanjiteru_'

'_Kabe no mukougawa_ _kono negai todoku no?  
Hikari ga mietara_ _tobidashite yuku_..._dakara_'

"But the more I find this person, the more I realize I'm jealous of them. It can't be helped. That's why I distance myself from them. 'I won't hurt them like this,' I tell myself. I go back to them again, and I'm still jealous. Then I realize the reason for the maze. It's so they can protect themselves from none other than me," Kouji whispered softly.

Kouichi shivered slightly. "Hey, Kouji...? Is that...how you felt like when you tried to get to know me?" the older twin asked tentatively. The reoccurring wave of guilt crashed him against a rock, pinning him there as it came for him again and again. His breathing pattern stopped, and Kouichi found himself holding his breath in anticipation for the answer.

'_Save_ _me_ _kikoeteru_ _nara  
Sono_ _te_ _wo_ _sashinobete  
Kono_ _mujun wo tokiakashite  
Show_ _me_ _mou ichido_ _dake  
Ano hi no kagayaki wo  
Nakushikaketa ikiru kibou wo  
Omoide sasete_'

It wasn't hard for Kouji to know where his brother was going. Humiliated, the bandana boy looked down. "I..." He stuttered in his own mind for a while before he had the guts to answer, "Yes. That's how I felt. That's how I feel. Anytime now, a Centaurumon could catch me."

His brother couldn't help but crack a smile. "What, with a Saggitarimon so he can demand that you hand over your obsessions?" Kouichi joked. The twins exchanged grins before walking inside. "Mom, we're home!" called out Kouichi, dropping his backpack beside the couch.

'_Save me kono meiro kara  
Mada akiramenaide  
Watashi rashiku I want to smile again  
Show you ano hi no egao  
Ano hi no kagayaki wa  
kitto, kanarazu todokete miseru  
Anata no moto e_'

Kouji regarded his brother with a smile. He couldn't give up yet. Silently, Kouji watched as his mother walked out of the kitchen and immediately embraced Kouichi, crying, though she wouldn't admit it. No, he couldn't give up. There was his goal he had to reach, and he would do anything to make sure he reached it. The stars were out, dancing along the dark night sky. Whether it was in the shadows of the day or the stars of the night, Kouji could simply not see how darkness and light were separable. This only fueled his determination. Watching as his mother walked over and gave him a quick hug as well, Kouji shut his eyes. He knew his brother was entirely confused with their mother's actions. He completely understood why Hideki had told everyone _but_ Kako and Kouichi almost everything they needed to know. _I never said I was alone in the maze, Kouichi. After all, someone's got to save you. And if they can't, I'm still going to be there to do so_.

------------------------------------

A/N-

Yes, I finished! I like the last part quite a bit. Usually, I hate inserting songs, but what with the name of the chapter, the theme of the last part, and my determination to finish the chapter (and close connection with Kouji at this point. Not to mention Koda Kumi is cool), I found this song entirely appropriate, though maybe I could have switched around the verses a bit to better suit what was happening. I do not own M-A-Z-E, sung by Koda Kumi. I like the lyrics, too. The _translations_ aren't on animelyrics(dot)com, but you can google them, unless you use some other lyrics site.

And...Thank you EVERYONE who reviewed (or PMed) last, _last_ time! With extra bows, and many sorry's, thank you-

**Ruki Minamoto**, **Snowy Leopardess,WithBrokenWings**, **PrincessYami**, **GemmaniGirl, The Light's Refrain**

And to everyone who reviewed (or PMed) last chapter, same thing. THANK YOU, SORRY, but mostly THANK YOU-

**GemmaniGirl**, **Catwarrior**, **Winter's Light**, **Snowy Leopardess**, **WithBrokenWings**, **Echo in the Dark**, **Lady Hikari-Yami**, **Ruki Minamoto**, **PrincessYami**

I tell you, it wasn't easy. I didn't expect it to be. I've been reading 1984. I just finished it, and I hated the ending. It was evil. I didn't get half the plot of the book, and found a lot more amusement in The Taming of the Shrew. Who knew I could love one of Shakespeare's works so much? I'm enjoying Chem slightly (balancing equations is fairly easy) and Math's a killer as always (one hmwk behind). But I owe you guys a lot for allowing me that break. I know it takes a lot of patience to wait an entire week for a chapter, moreover a month (no I'm not asking for a month's break). If all goes well (I hope it does) I should be updating regularly. It might take a while…

I'm sorry the chapter is shorter than usual (or it seems to me) but I'm trying to…add a bit more of a point into the chapters. And signed reviewers, I'm sorry if I spam you with all the reviews I need to catch up on. Tell you what: I'll condense it into one.

Review or PM or Flame


	12. The Only Thing To Fear

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon. If you haven't watched much of the show, there's Kouichi's horrible summary view below, and if you don't want a spoiler, don't read.

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The Only Thing To Fear

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Silence remained for a little while longer before he erupted into a coughing fit. It had been coming often, now, more than twice a day. Often times he wondered if it should be considered a bad sign.

"Are you sure it has to be this way?" the girl asked desperately. He shouldn't be calling her a girl, he knew, but compared to his state, she was a girl, and he would call her nothing else.

The coughing fit slowly faded and was replaced with his trademark smile. Carefree, calm, and soft. Eventually he got his breath back and spoke in a quiet voice, "Are you sure you cannot marry him?" They were both the same question, in essence; they would result in the same answer, anyway.

In many ways, she reminded him of his own daughter. Perhaps that was why his daughter looked up to her. When she didn't answer, he sighed. "Rai, you know it is the same thing. I must, just as you must not marry him. Of course, I doubt he'd ever have the courage to ask you..." He trailed off, chuckling. "But dear girl, I was meant to go a long time ago. You have a choice."

There was that stubborn glint in her eyes. "I don't want to go!" she snapped, standing up. "You're lying! You have a choice, too!"

"'Angels choose their commitments wisely.' Do you know that it's a famous quote from my books? Only, it isn't my quote," the man whispered softly. He knew she hated him at the moment, and every reason why, but he continued, "You know he is the one who found that quote to be true. Why? Because you were an angel to him. That is why he resents Kouichi with all his heart. You are saving Kouichi, and he cannot be by your side while you do so. You do recall at the restaurant how when you let the light out, he was glaring from outside? Yes, you know what I'm talking about Rai." He frowned when she refused to face him. It reminded him greatly of a young child.

Rai hung her head, her eyes glued to the carpet floor. "An angel?" she repeated. "Me? He's delusional. The only think angelic about me is probably my innocent face, and even that's a fake. Does he even know how many times I've led him on into thinking we had a relationship? I'm ju_st _doing my job, Marise, I'm not committed! I could care less about the Digital World!" She swallowed and halted her rant, unsure of what was flying out of her mouth. "Tell him...tell him that for me, would you?" whispered Rai.

Marise Saito smiled. "But you should do so yourself," he said sagely, standing up. "I'm afraid you'll have to see yourself out. Old age, no matter how young the body, affects us mentally."

When Marise left the room, Rai sighed and fell back into an armchair letting out a long sigh. "One can't hope too much, Marise."

-------------------------------------

Kouichi looked at Marise's diary for the first time in what he found to seem like a long time. How long has it been? Drawing a breath, he shut his eyes and whispered, "Duskmon...? Lowemon?"

"There's another D-Tector out," came Duskmon's blunt reply.

Another D-Tector. Another D-Tector, another digimon-it didn't seem to matter anymore. His life was a boring circle of events. Eventually, it would repeat itself. But recent happenings had offered a chance for a change. "Duskmon, I don't care!" the boy snapped, hand tightening around the diary. He wasn't sure how Hideki would react, but it had to be done. Possibly, definitely most likely, Kouichi would make many enemies with what he was doing. He could end up being cast away from his friends, and he knew this. Kako could hate him forever. For all he knew, Kouichi could end up causing the destruction of both worlds.

Even with that possibility haunting his mind, Kouichi found that it only seemed right in the end. Kako deserved to know, and as of lately, the diary slipped out of his mind. Every time he caught sight of it, Kouichi felt strange, as if there was a burden placed on him, one he had cast upon himself.

After deciding he was completely positive about his choice, Kouichi drew another breath and asked, "Do you know whose D-Tector?" He completely ignored the fact that he had snapped at Duskmon earlier.

Duskmon didn't seem vexed at the least. He calmly regarded Kouichi with amusement before answering, "As usual, no. I'm assuming it's Izumi's. Care to tell me what's wrong"

Kouichi froze. 'Care to tell me what's wrong?' Had Duskmon actually asked him that? Coming from Duskmon's mouth, the words sounded foreign, unreal. But having been stuck in a dream while his supposedly 'faulted' self ran wild, Kouichi knew better than to think this was a dream. He opened and closed his mouth several times, but nothing came out. Finally, he rasped, "What?"

"...or not." Duskmon sounded slightly offended.

Unable to understand what was going on, Kouichi blinked rapidly, shooting a quick look at the clock. Midnight exactly. How long had he been up? Swallowing, he turned to Duskmon. "Where's Lowemon?" asked the boy with wide eyes.

Duskmon shrugged. "I'm assuming he's making sure the others don't make some stupid mistake or another," he responded.

Thoughts raced through Kouichi's head. "Is this...happening because I'm accepting the part of me I rejected?" he thought aloud in a quick murmur. Duskmon said nothing when Kouichi turned to him. "Both parts were equivalent to you and Lowemon, right?"

Again, nothing.

Somehow overcome by the gift of gab, Kouichi continued, "So that means you two are going to become one, am I right? After all, the only reason you two existed as two separate entities was because I couldn't accept my faults. My faults, which I pushed aside the time you took over me. When I got Lowemon, I made sure to push away every fault I found in myself. But now, I realize, that won't get me anywhere. Now that I'm accepting my other half, you're going to disappear, aren't you, Duskmon?" There was a certain hint of fear in his voice. Fear. He feared losing Duskmon.

Staring thoughtfully out the window, Duskmon merely shrugged once more. Before Kouichi could open his mouth, however, the digimon allowed a blade out, pointing it at the boy's neck. "Hush," he commanded in a soft voice. Soft, but dangerous. The blade was withdrawn, and Duskmon walked closer to the window, eyes glued to the luminous moon. "The time has come," he murmured, "and I will cease to exist outside of Lowemon, and he outside of me. We will become one once more, and perhaps there will be a bit more balance in the grand scale. You see, you can never depend on one person's opinion of the shadow system, because it's completely tricky. Eventually, you will see how it truly operates. Then you will come to see why it is necessary that I must not exist as my own entity." He turned back around to face Kouichi. "The moon cannot exist without the sun to balance it. Even the darkness and the light have two sides to themselves. Those two parts balance the attribute out just as they balance each other out. To be a warrior of either of the two is a great responsibility, Kouichi, and you and your brother have taken it well."

Kouichi let out a choked sob before he could stop himself. There were tears flowing down his cheeks freely. Surprised, Duskmon stepped back. "Come on, give me a break. Don't tell me I make touching speeches," he said, half-jokingly.

"Y-you don't," Kouichi murmured, his voice cracking although he tried to keep it level. He couldn't understand why this was happening. Perhaps this was...

There was a knock on his door. "Kouichi, are you okay?"

His mother. Kouichi froze. Ms. Kimura walked into the room, frowning slightly. She fell silent almost immediately, her mouth opened in shock. Kouichi looked from his mother to Duskmon, for fear she could see him. "M-Mom...?" he murmured, eyes wide._ Please say no, please say no_...

The next second, Ms. Kimura collapsed to the floor. Kouichi's eyes widened. "KOUJI!" he screamed at the top of his lungs.

Kouji stumbled out of his room, his blanket entangling his feet. As he was a few steps away from Kouichi's room, he tripped over the blanket, doing a somersault and rising to his feet. "Wha-? Who, what? Is Kanaye attacking again?" he muttered, half-asleep.

There was a long silence. Regarding his brother strangely, Kouichi_ in_quired, "What dreams have you been having?" When Kouji reddened, the older twin regretted phrasing the question as he had. "Would you help me with Mom? I think...I think she saw Duskmon..." He swallowed, looking at Duskmon nervously.

Snorting, Kouji looked at Duskmon and remarked, "Well, when you look at a guy that's practically covered in eyes, wouldn't you faint, too?"

"You and the others didn't."

"Hush. Duskmon, how could she see you?" Kouji snapped.

Duskmon didn't seem the least bit ashamed as he confessed, "I forgot to mention that as I disappear, I lose the ability to remain invisible to those not involved in the incident four years ago, and eventually I will become-well, right now I am-physically real in your world. Eventually, I'll lose that physical state and merely become visible. Then comes the best part of all!" Lacking enthusiasm, he told them, "I'll get to be stuck in the same body as Lowemon, completely bored."

"Wait, if you're physically real right now, then you can pick her up and put her on the couch!" the bandana boy declared, pointing at Duskmon and furiously glaring at the digimon.

Kouichi and Duskmon exchanged glances before the older boy asked somewhat hesitantly, "You sleep with your bandana on?" It took every ounce of self-control not to laugh.

Kouji looked at his brother with a look that clearly told the older twin that his question would remained unanswered. "So are you going to help us or do we have to risk dropping our mom, Duskmon?" he snapped at Duskmon.

Effortlessly, Duskmon strode forward and picked up Ms. Kimura in his hands (which Kouichi thanked his lucky stars weren't blades) and placed her on the couch in the living room. "Happy?" he asked in a gruff voice, gazing at the twins unhappily.

"NO," Kouji retorted. If anything, he was annoyed at having his sleep interrupted.

Kouichi stared at the comatose body of his mother. Shifting from one foot to another, he muttered, "Will she be okay?" He highly doubted it. First Kanaye and the sword, now Duskmon. _First thing I do when I come back from Hideki's tomorrow afternoon is explain what the heck is going on_, he decided. She had a right to know after all. And he needed time to prepare. That was if he woke up early enough.

-------------------------------------

Much to his luck, Kouichi made it out of his house before his mother woke up. That left Duskmon to mope in his room and Kouji to deal with their mother for the moment.

_I really hope it didn't scare her too much. Should I talk to Hideki about it_? Kouichi let out a long sigh as he rang the doorbell. The door opened, but Kouichi's eyes were glued to the ground as he was contemplating how to break th_e news _to his mother and how exactly to explain to Hideki. "Oh, what would I say? 'Hi Hideki. I hope you don't mind that my mom saw Duskmon. You won't murder me if I explain it to her, will you? Oh, and I hope you don't mind, but I gave Kako the di-" He paused and looked up, ashen-faced. "E-er...h-hello, Mr. Sakai..."

Gen Sakai stared at the young boy before him. His eyes narrowed as he noticed the book in the boy's hand. The frown on his face deepened. "What are you doing here, boy?" he demanded.

Kouichi stared at Mr. Sakai with wide eyes, unsure of what to say. The very air around him caused him to become terrified into a sudden silence. He hadn't expected the man to be home. Kako had explained to him once that he always was away on one business trip or the other, and Hideki hadn't cancelled lessons, either. But what could he say? 'Hideki asked me to come over because he's training me at the moment. Only because Mr. Saito couldn't. Oh, and I need to give Kako this book, which is really her biological father's diary!' That explanation would probably earn him a good yelling, a kick off of the property, or a slam of the door in his face. So Kouichi stood there, mouth clamped shut.

"KAKO DON'T BLOW UP THE KITCHEN! WHAT ARE YOU-NO! PIXIMON GET BACK HERE! NO! STOP IT! KAKOOOO!" Hideki screamed. From behind Mr. Sakai, Kouichi could catch glimpses of Hideki running back and forth, chasing either Kako or Piximon. He must have finally noticed Kouichi, because he ran to the door immediately. "Uh...hello, Kouichi..." he muttered, not meeting the accusing eyes of the man right next to him. "Didn't know you'd come this early." If anything, Kouichi could describe Hideki as nervous.

Not that he wasn't nervous himself. "W-well," he mumbled in return, "I needed to talk to you about several things, but if now's a bad time, I could come back."

"Is that Kouichi?" Kako exclaimed, running to the door. She looked annoyed. Pointing to the digimon behind her, she asked, "Could you please get Piximon off my back? He keeps bugging me to do my homework again!"

Several times, Kouichi opened and closed his mouth. Finally, he stared up at Mr. Sakai. "I'm sorry," he said, bowing slightly. "I'll come back later."

Hideki cleared his throat, and Kouichi turned back around. Walking outside, he grabbed Kouichi by the shoulder, turned him around and pushed him inside, declaring, "Sorry, but as far as _I'm_ concerned you're staying. You can bug Kako to do her homework, and I'll actually be able to finish a bit of work!" A satisfied smile graced Hideki's face when he noticed the scowl Gen had put on.

As if taking a hint, Kako grabbed Kouichi's arm and rushed him into her room, slamming the door shut behind them. She leaned against the door and sank to the floor_ e_mitting a sigh. "You have no idea how chaotic it's been since yesterday night," she told him, reaching out a hand and grabbing her backpack to pull it closer. I've had to call Piximon a battery-operated-flying-plush-thing, Hideki had to hide all the weapons and lock them in his closet, and to top it off, to make it seem like he's really how I described him, Piximon keeps saying, 'Do your homework!' Infuriating...hey, what's that? Another one of your books?"

Kouichi tightened his grip around the diary. 'I want you to read this.' It was so simple to say. Just give it to her, Kouichi, a voice inside of him yelled, Just do it! But he was held back. He would be betraying Hideki, wouldn't he? Placing the diary behind of him, Kouichi shook his head and replied, "It's nothing. Do you guys do this every time he comes home?"

"No! He's staying for a week! A WEEK! Gen never stays that long! And after what happened before the dance, um...well..." Kako looked away sheepishly.

Kouichi rose an eyebrow. "Do I want to know?" he asked.

Kako looked up. "I've just been making fun of his name!" she replied indignantly.

Chuckling, Kouichi shook his head. "Yeah, I don't want to know." He sat down across from Kako and leaned back on his palms, looking up at the ceiling. "Last night, I was talking to Duskmon," he murmured. There was a sudden second where a pained expression appeared on his face. He quickly pushed it away and drew a breath, trying to remain calm.

"Yeah?"

He felt choked up. For several seconds, all Kouichi did was breath, inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly. "I...well, see, I was talking to him, and he's..." Kouichi shut his eyes. "He's fading. Back into Lowemon."

Kako opened her mouth before noticing the expression on Kouichi's face. Shaking her head, she shut her own eyes. "Sometimes," the girl murmured, "there will be times when we have to give up what is most precious to us. Even those who seem completely heartless...will have to. In order for us to keep those precious things, there is a sacrifice to be made. Some of us are blind to the way until too late. Others are afraid. The very few who do take this sacrifice...do it for those they love. We can't stop the flow of life, and we probably can't really alter it, either. All I can say is that Duskmon won't really be gone. You know that. I'm sure..." She trailed off, trying to spit out the words. They failed to come.

A sad smile appeared on Kouichi's face as he opened his eyes. He sat up straight and leaned forward, covering her mouth. Kako's eyes widened in surprise. With a sigh, Kouichi explained, "But what's worse is he's physically real in our world now. My mom...she walked in while I was talking to him. And...and then she fainted." He pulled his hand away and looked at his shoes, embarrassed. "I have no idea how to explain it to her," he told her miserably, "and I can't lie about a being that's pretty much human except for the fact that he wears weird armor stuff and has eyes all over his body."

She laughed at this. "Hey, at least the others didn't get caught, right?"

Kouichi just shrugged. "I hope not," he added as an afterthought. "It'd be pretty strange to explain to our parents..." He let out a sigh and hung his head.

"I guess..." Kako bit her lip and silently stared at Kouichi, half listening in on the conversation that was being taken place outside her room.

"...the hell would you know?"

Kouichi shot Kako a confused look. Stiffening, she placed a finger on her lips.

"Quiet. I have every right to throw you out of the house."

"You have no right to throw her out of the house!"

"But you'd just_ tak_e her with you. I don't need to throw her out of the house."

"Shut the-"

Kako went pale, Kouichi could see. He sighed before moving to sit against the door beside her. "Kako," he whispered, "just ignore them, okay? Did you finish your homework? Wait, Piximon was bugging you to do so, so of course not. Come on. Kako..." He did his best to convince her to ignore the conversation, but nothing seemed to move her. At last, when the voices quieted, tears welled in her eyes.

"Kouichi...it isn't fair," she whispered, drawing her knees up and encircling them with her arms. Her head was down, but he didn't need to see to tell she was crying.

He wasn't sure what to do. Feelings overwhelmed him one at a time until at last he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her towards him. It felt strange, but it held a calming effect for them both. In a matter of seconds, Kako's soft crying was subdued. Slowly pulling away, Kouichi murmured, "I'm sure...positive...that it's all talk. Don't cry, Kako."

She drew a breath and let out a soft sigh. "I don't...want to leave yet. There's too much I need to finish. Too much...left incomplete." She looked up at Kouichi, a desperate look in her eyes. "I can't leave!"

"If all else fails, Kazemon can fly you back and forth," Kouichi joked.

"Kouichi!"

"What?"

"You dork," she growled, rising to her feet. At the window, Piximon floated, tapping on_ the_ glass impatiently. "Go _aw_ay Piximon. What-Kouichi, no!" Kako groaned as Kouichi stood up and opened the window for the digimon to fly in.

"Thanks, Kouichi! Yup, yup, Kako! You know what time it is!" Piximon said, not the least bit bothered by Kako's foul mood.

Kouichi smiled. _And while he tortures her to do her homework, I prepare a long speech on how to explain to Mom_...

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Tomoko Kimura woke up to find herself on the couch. The very last thi_ng sh_e remembered was that...thing. Shivering, she stood up and walked into the kitchen to find her youngest son. "Kouji, where's your brother?" she asked, deciding the entire thing was a dream.

Kouji sat at the dining table, a sandwich in one hand and the newspaper in the other. He choked on his food when he discovered his mother behind him. "Um," he murmured, "I think he went out."

"Oh, I see." _Might as well make breakfast_, she decided.

"Well, it's one. I better get to kendo practice," Kouji told her, dropping the paper and stuffing the rest of the sandwich in his mouth.

Ms. Kimura nearly choked. "One?" she repeated. "How long have I been asleep?"

As much as he wanted to refrain from chewing his food, Kouji did, and swallowed. _Let's make this quick, Kouji_, he told himself before he took a deep breath. "Well, after seeing Duskmon you fainted and so Kouichi decided to wake me up. Duskmon had to carry you to the couch because Kouichi and I were afraid we'd drop you. After that I argued with Duskmon for a while, yelled at Kouichi and then went back to sleep. Kouichi fell asleep at some time but now he's at Kako's," Kouji said quickly, as fast as his mouth could dish out the words.

Tomoko stood there, still confused. She hadn't caught a single word her son had said except the last sentence. "So he's at Kako's house?" she repeated, dazed slightly.

"Yes and he said his room is a mess, don't clean it today and he'll clean it when he gets back," Kouji reported, deciding his brother wouldn't want their mother to faint yet again after seeing Duskmon in Kouichi's room.

"Kouji..."

"Yes?"

"You're going to see your father, right?" she asked quietly.

Kouji nodded and looked away, his gaze eventually falling on the clock. "W-well, I'm going to be late! I'm coming straight home!" he yelled, dashing out the door, kendo bag in hand.

The door shut, and Tomoko was left alone in the house, confused, half-asleep and hungry. _Maybe I just need to relax_, she decided, continuing to make her lunch. _And then I'll clean Kouichi's room for him_.

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Kouichi stared at what he had written. A hand cramp resulted from two pages back and forth of continuous writing, two lines per every line on the paper. There was writing from the top to the very bottom of the page, going into the margin to the very edge of the paper. Wincing, he shook his hand for a while, eyes glued to Kako. The girl seemed at her breaking point. Piximon was hovering nearby, commenting on every mistake she made. Before Kako could strangle the digimon, Kouichi shoved his paper forward. "Tell me what you think, will you?" he asked. "Or, no, just listen." Kouichi drew back the paper and inhaled deeply before reading as fast as he could:

"After hearing about Kouji from Grandma, I thought it would be a bit of help to get the family together so I started stalking him. It wasn't really stalking, I just wanted to figure a bit more about him, but that's beside the point. The point is, I followed him to the Shibuya train station one day, and that happened to be the day that I tripped down the stairs quite stupidly and fell into a coma. It's not my fault, though. The stairs turned the corner every flight, so naturally, when one runs down the stairs, their foot would catch on a step, right?

"Anyway, I fell into a coma, but I didn't know that. The next thing I knew I was in this place that was dark. Then I don't remember much. Just Cherubimon and getting brainwashed. But it wasn't bad brainwashing to make me kill people! It was just to kill Kouji and everyone, but that was because I was brainwashed and I got turned into a digimon. So while I was Duskmon..." Kouichi trailed off and waved to the air to his side. "Okay, Duskmon will be here at the time when I say all this stuff I'm completely making up right now," he muttered before continuing, "So while I was Duskmon, Kouji was off being a loser-yes, a loser-and eventually managed to make friends with Takuya and the rest. But I beat him up as Duskmon several times.

"Kouji didn't know about my existence, and their main purpose was to stop Duskmon. They didn't know about me. I was brainwashed, and I didn't really know them, so it worked out for both of us. Our goals as we were. But Kouji beat me and I'm here." Kouichi paused to catch his breath. "After that I had to spill the entire secret to him. I think he was mad at me for a while. Then we ran into Cherubimon and I managed to beat him up with Kouji's help. No, he didn't do that much. I just couldn't digivolve until I got my D-Tector." Another pause. "I show her the D-Tector at this point."

Surprised, Kako rose her hands up as if surrendering. "One second!" she exclaimed. "Too much info! Slow down so she can understand!"

Kouichi sank back into his seat. "I don't want her to understand. I don't want her to know. She'll only worry more," he mumbled, crumpling the papers up in his hands.

Kako sighed, "Kouichi, there's one thing you need to know..."

"What?"

"You're stupid. Honestly, don't you know the real world by now?"

"...the pollution or the idiocy?"

Kako paused to consider the question. "Um...they're pretty much the same, if you ask me."

It was Kouichi's turn to pause. He smiled slightly before murmuring, "Good point. So then I do know the real world." The smile turned triumphant.

Rolling her eyes, Kako brushed the paper in front of her to the floor and leaned back in her chair. She slowly massaged the sides of her head and shut her eyes. "Let me just say this."

"Shoot."

"She's your mother."

"Right."

"She cares what's happening to you."

"True."

"You owe her a lot."

"Okay."

"SO JUST TELL HER THE TRUTH!" Kako snapped, swatting Piximon towards Kouichi.

Out of surprise, Kouichi held out his hands to catch the soaring digimon, breaking his fall. "Don't take your anger out on Piximon!" the boy whined, letting go of Piximon when he began to fly again, having recovered quickly from the throw.

Kako was silent. Her eyes were glued to the window. "You know," she commented softly, "you owe her that. A speech won't do anything, and you can't keep lying. Just come out and tell her the truth." Black eyes turned to Kouichi, expectant for an answer.

He looked down, slowly taking in her words. "I guess...I do. But you ought to be a bit truthful yourself. You didn't ask Hideki, did you?" accused the boy, pointing a finger at Kako.

"It isn't polite to point!" Kako snapped, pointing back. "You jerk, I need time!"

Furiously, Kouichi stood up. "You have time!"

"What! With Mr. Genki-less?"

Silence descended upon the conversation. Kako held her ground, glaring furiously at Kouichi. Exasperated, Kouichi slapped his forehead and groaned, "Don't tell me that's what you meant when you were making fun of his name."

But she just smiled and giggled. "But it's fun!" she insisted. Kako jumped up to her feet. "Hey, do you want to go out? I'm feeling stuffed in here." Kouichi just shrugged. "Okay, so we're going!" decided Kako, grabbing his hand and yanking it as she headed for the door.

Hideki threw the door open. He was breathing hard, trying to catch his breath. "O...okay, Kouichi, now we ca-HEY! Hold it! Just what are you two doing?" he snapped suspiciously, most pointed towards Kouichi.

Kouichi stared at his hand. _This doesn't bode well_, he realized. Kako coughed and cleared her throat, looking away as if to act innocent. This managed to change the course of Hideki's glare and suspicion.

Growling, Hideki repeated, "Kako..."

_Okay, maybe it does. Yes, I don't get in trouble_! Mentally cheering, he let go of Kako's hand and sent her an apologetic look. She looked slightly disappointed, but greatly annoyed. _Actually, it might not bode well for Hideki_, thought Kouichi, observing both siblings expressions. If there was one thing he felt like, it was like an announcer doing play-by-plays at a game. He silently acted so, finding it slightly amusing. For not taking part in this glaring contest, it was definitely amusing to Kouichi.

But all good things come to an end, and this moment was no exception. A full minute later, Gen stepped in the room, mouth open. His face contorted into a gaze of anger when he saw Kako had turned towards Kouichi, hands on the lapels of his jacket. "What are you doing?" the icy voice asked. Everyone froze. No one said anything. Immediately, he turned to Kouichi and demanded, "Why are you here?"

"I...uh...y-you see, sir, um, o-one, Hideki is...uh...t-tutoring me! Yeah!" Kouichi blurted, nodding with wide eyes. Never had anyone scared him this much. At least, not usually. A dull thud sounded, and Kouichi turned his head quickly to find Piximon on the ground, facing away from Mr. Sakai. He turned back and swallowed.

The man didn't buy it. "So Kako grabbing you by the collar has to do with Hideki tutoring you?" he asked in a colder voice than before.

By now, however, Kouichi had managed to collect himself enough to stop shaking. He calmly removed Kako's hands and inclined his head in her direction. Swiftly grabbing Marise's diary (as he didn't want it to fall into the wrong hands), Kouichi stepped around Kako and politely bowed to Mr. Sakai. He murmured in apology, "I'm sorry if this was a bad time. I'll come again later, then." He was just about to leave when Kako grabbed his arm. _I knew something this bad would happen_, Kouichi thought, wincing.

Almost instinctively, Hideki grabbed his other arm. "Let go of him, Kako! He needs to train!"

The girl tugged on Kouichi's hand. "NO WAY! I need someone to get Piximon off my back!" Kako snapped.

Effortlessly, Hideki yanked on Kouichi's hand as well, countering, "Well maybe if you did your homework he would!"

Another tug.

"Shut up!"

Another.

"Whatever happened to respecting your elders?"

Another.

"ELDER SCHMELDER, YOU STINK!"

Another.

"You're a bratty, immature, insignificant worm!"

"Worms are disgusting, just like you!" Kako snapped, giving Kouichi's arm a final tug before he managed to release both hands from the siblings' grip.

"I...think," Kouichi said slowly, "you two need to be stuck in a room to dish out your insults. You're a couple of kids." He ignored the glare from Hideki and turned to Kako, frowning slightly. "And you need to ask," he told her before heading for the exit of the room. "I'll see you two la-" started Kouichi, when Gen grabbed a hold of his collar, lifting him well above the ground. _Give me a break_. The boy mentally groaned.

Gen's grip tightened. "You won't be coming back here if you know what's good for you, boy. I remember you...fatherless." Kouichi choked, but found himself unable to say anything. "So if you think about coming back here, think of it as your mother being childless."

All was silent. Fury was racking through Kouichi's veins, demanding to be vented. Every ounce of self control he had previously had dissipated as he lifted up his foot and thrust it forward, allowing it to graze into Gen's arm and hit his shoulder. In a way, Kouichi was surprised to feel no guilt for attacking the man, but he didn't care. Having released himself and seeing Gen leaning against the wall, rubbing his injured shoulder, Kouichi walked out the door to Kako's room. "If you even think about harming me, you're sorely mistaken. I'm not fatherless, thank you; my father's alive and well. Although maybe I would wish otherwise, I've got a brother, too, so even if you did manage to get me, she wouldn't be childless. You, on the other hand, should consider your own family," the boy advised, practically storming out of the house.

There was a slam of the door before Kako and Hideki turned to each other. Hideki was positively amazed, Kako bursting happily.

"That...was...so...COOL! I had no idea you could ever do that! I'm going to try that on Kanaye next week!" she laughed, turning to Piximon.

Piximon was smiling too, but not because of what Kouichi had done. Fluttering by Kako's shoulder, he sang, "Homework time! Yup, yup!" Kako groaned and fell back on her bed.

Still shocked, Hideki stared at Gen. "Why doesn't he do that in practice...?" the boy mumbled. _Do I not torture him enough? So I have to insult his family to get him angry?_ Hideki let out a sigh and slouched out of the room. With a mumble of, "Kako, just do your homework," and, "Get out of her room, Gen. You need to treat that shoulder," Hideki walked into his own room and collapsed on the bed face first.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi let out a sigh, rubbing his throat gently. The sky had its dull blue hue, clouds dotting a few areas here and there. _Just another day_, he thought from his place at the table in front of the cafe.

There were a few conversations that took place around him, but Kouichi paid no heed until someone called his name.

"Kouichi!"

The boy looked up and found Tomoki staring at him, Shinya right beside him. Quietly, he waved to them both.

"Lowemon told us there's a D-Tector out. You didn't get it?" Tomoki asked. There was a hint of concern in his voice.

Kouichi remained silent. In truth, he had completely forgotten about the D-Tector. After going to his father's house last time, he wondered what was truly going on in Kouji's mind. He seemed perfectly fine, but all he had written made him sound crazy. _Maybe he plans to write a book about us_, Kouichi guessed absentmindedly, not really paying attention to Shinya or Tomoki. It wasn't intentional, but what had happened back at Kako's house had gotten him to think if he really was fatherless. His father wasn't around, of course, but that couldn't be helped, could it? He was only one man.

Tomoki seemed to get the hint. Turning to Shinya, and then Kouichi, he said, "Well, we better get going now. I'll see you later. Come on, Shinya, I'll get you the ice cream now."

Letting a tired sigh escape his lips, Kouichi rose to his feet and headed back home. If there was one thing to fear, it was the possibility of a broken family.

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A/N-

I think my computer is against me, but oh well. I'm hoping on zooming through more of this. That made no sense. My bad. I have thirteen minutes before school (less, actually) while I'm finishing this.

Thank you those who reviewed:

**Ruki Minamoto, Konfused Kitty, GemmaniGirl, Catwarrior, WithBrokenWings, PrincessYami**

A story is nothing without its readers, but it would help if you all gave me some advice on fixing it, not just the same people. (Of course, those same people are cool, too, but I can sort of figure out what they want by now.) So if you're just reading, take some time to review, please? It doesn't cause viruses to jump into your computer. Come to think of it, I should be reading more fics. Anyway, big thank you to everyone who reads and everyone who reviews.

Also, sorry for spamming certain people with review replies from Ch. 9. I realized too late that I already sent those out. And you'll get your review replies PMed (if anonymous) or replied to you (if signed) tomorrow. I'm researching for an AP US History diagnostic test. Something screwed around with the italics, so the thoughts might not be italicized.

Review or PM or Flame.


	13. Find Out Your Reality

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon. Spoiler in chapter if you haven't watched the series before.

Dedication-These are rare, but I have to put this up. Dedicated to Pekkle...happy birthday.

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Find Out Your Reality

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If there was one thing she wouldn't tolerate in her house, it was a messy room. She had planned on cleaning Kouichi's room that day, anyway, along with Kouji's. Exactly what kind of zoo they had created, she had no idea.

Ms. Kimura held back a yawn, determined to finish cleaning before she did anything. _First Kouji's_, she thought absentmindedly, heading to her younger son's unofficial room. Opening the door, Tomoko sighed. Nothing that even hinted a mess.

She was impressed. Usually, Kouji's room was the mess she had to clean up. Kouichi's had scattered papers in one corner, a closet full of things she had no idea about and a desk cluttered with items he never bothered to clean up. "I'll dust Kouji's room later," Ms. Kimura murmured, shutting the door with a silent click.

Her gaze traveled to Kouichi's room, only a few yards away. A sigh escaped her. What she wouldn't do for sleep at the moment. _Maybe I should just let Kouichi clean his room himself_, she thought, taking a step forward and then stopping. That wouldn't do, and she knew it perfectly well. He deserved a break.

Smiling slightly, she walked over to his room and murmured, "How strange boys can be. I wonder why he went to Kako's...? Well, I always knew this would happen." For some odd reason, a familiar tune picked up in her head, and she could do all but ignore it. Ms. Kimura hummed softly, cracking open Kouichi's door and observing the mess that was his room.

Suppressing a laugh, Ms. Kimura walked into the room, placing her hands on her hips and observing the magnitude of the mess. She sighed and shook her head, bending down to pick up a paper that had fallen on the floor. "What's this?" Tomoko stood up straight, eyes widening as she examined the paper. _Duskmon...? What is this? A game?_ Puzzled, she picked up several other papers that had been crumpled up and thrown onto the floor.

The once cheerful expression on her face darkened into a frown.

Someone cleared their throat. Ms. Kimura's eyes widened as she dropped the papers and turned around.

A grumpy Duskmon stood there, perfectly calm. "Uh...could you possibly tell me where Kouichi is...?"

The lady blinked once.

Duskmon stared.

Finally, Ms. Kimura shook her head. "I'm in some dream, am I right?" she guessed, feeling her forehead.

_That works_, Duskmon thought, nodding and affirming, "That's correct." Why make the moment more awkward than it should be?

"Very well, then. Um...whatever you are-"

He quickly interrupted, "Duskmon." If there was anything he hated, it was being called a _thing_ or anything other than his name.

Ms. Kimura smiled, much to his surprise. "Very well, then, Duskmon. Would you help me clean the house for the time being?"

He had no choice but to comply.

-------------------------------------

It was too much. He couldn't take it anymore. Kouichi jumped to his feet unable to bear the guilt of not going after the D-Tector. He shut his watering eyes, wondering exactly _why_ they were watering. _Am I that emotionally unstable right now?_ His brain was definitely in place, but the only guess Kouichi could make about his behavior was that pulling himself together had certain side effects.

_Annoying side effects,_ he thought unhappily, stuffing his hands in his pocket and opening his eyes. The tears spilled out, annoying him further. All Kouichi could do was ignore the stares he got and head straight to his father's house.

The walk was a quiet one for the most part, though the beginning had been awkward. He had managed to stop the tears. Even though Kouichi knew the reason why this was happening, it still felt strange. To have two parts of him coming together...

And to know Duskmon only had days left.

Guilt pounded at Kouichi mercilessly. He kept walking, though, looking straight ahead. Minutes later, when he reached the house, the tears came back.

This time, they were no side effect. They were his own.

_I feel like a baby_, Kouichi thought, wiping his eyes and trying to keep calm. He didn't want to lose Duskmon. Half-heartedly, he brought out the key and opened the front door, removing his shoes and shutting the door as soon as he was inside. Quickly ascending the stairs to his brother's room, Kouichi wondered what he really wanted to do.

He could tell there was more in his mind, but having two clashing personalities fighting to become one inside of him, he could hardly tell what his other side was thinking. There wasn't a slightest hint of whether the intention was good or bad.

The climb up the stairs seemed slower than it was. It could have been because Kouichi had his mind on other matters that when he reached the door to Kouji's room, he spent minutes with his hand hovering over the doorknob, staring blankly at the door. Just as his hand was about to close around the doorknob, the door opened itself, revealing a bleary-eyed Kouji.

Startled, both brothers pointed at each other with their mouths open. "Y-you!" chorused the boys. A smile appeared on Kouji's face as he further opened the door. "Hah, so I could get you into the house more than once," he chuckled.

"Shush. It was for business," Kouichi grumbled, trying to not look happy as he stepped inside. He shot another look at his brother and frowned. The bandana was off, he had bed hair and Kouji's eyes-they were red. The frown deepened and Kouichi, trying not to sound suspicious, asked, "Were you crying?" Instead of a gentle inquiry, it came out as more of a demanding question.

Kouji winced and shrugged, looking away from his brother and returning to his desk. The older twin frowned and headed straight for the closet, wasting no time in dragging out all four boxes. He caught the attention of Kouji, who seemed grumpy now that his bandanas were being dragged out by his brother. He scowled, "Get your own bandanas!" That being said, Kouji didn't budge from his seat.

Sighing, Kouichi replied, "Business." He then proceeded to pick a box to open. Already, Kouichi had opened two boxes that had each carried a single D-Tector. He had no idea how his own D-Tector was conceived, but guessed that it didn't matter so long as he _had_ his D-Tector. He had already opened the two to his right, but each box to his left he guessed held either bandanas or bandanas and the possibility of a D-Tector. It could have been that Duskmon had merely mentioned the D-Tector to get his mind off of things, further extending his white lie to everyone else.

He picked the closest box on his left and opened it.

Nothing.

Losing faith, Kouichi turned to the last box, wondering if he should open it. There were more things than that on his mind. Why was he doing this? Why couldn't Kouji be in his place? Was he being selfish for wishing so? But the question in his head that seemed the most significant was asking why this was happening. It made no sense for Lucemon to just up and appear four years later. He could wait a few generations and be at full power again for sure.

Was it for revenge?

Suddenly standing straight, Kouichi turned his gaze to his brother. Revenge? Revenge. Possibly the most informed of them all, Kouji was probably the only one who _truly_ understood Lucemon's motives, if any.

With renewed hope surging through him, Kouichi opened the last box, smiling slightly at the green shine around the D-Tector. He grasped the green and white D-Tector, pocketing it quickly. The shine lingered a while longer before disappearing just as Kouji turned his head. Closing up the box, Kouichi carefully placed the boxes back in the closet and shut the door, leaning against it and folding his arms across his chest. Kouji rose an eyebrow before turning back to whatever he was working on, scribbling madly.

"Say, Kouji, why would Lucemon want to bug us now?" Kouichi inquired, pretending to examine the ceiling if Kouji chanced to turn around.

Kouji continued to work with his paper, muttering, "He wants revenge. We ruined his plans and even if he goes down trying, he wants to ruin us in the worst way possible." Stopping what he was doing, Kouji swiveled his chair around, leaning back and cocking his head to the side. "That's a good question, actually. Any other kid would have done the same. I think Lucemon has more incentive for revenge than meets the eye," the bandana-less boy said slowly, thinking about the facts himself.

The other twin was about to ask another question when Kouji suddenly shot up. "Oh shoot," the younger twin muttered, glancing at the clock. "I need to get home. Who knows what the heck is happening there."

The color drained from Kouichi's face. Of course, he had forgotten about yesterday night's events. Pushing off the door, he raced out of Kouji's room and nearly down the stairs when he remembered what happened last time he had done so. Gripping onto the handrail tightly, Kouichi zoomed down the stairs, waiting when Kouji called him to stop and quickly followed him to the first floor.

"Hurry up," Kouichi ushered impatiently as Kouji picked up his bandana that lay on his kendo bag. It took him a few seconds to put it on, but after much fumbling, the bandana boy was ready to go, kendo bag slung over his shoulder.

Kouichi threw the door open and raced out, not bothering to wait for Kouji who, burdened with a kendo bag, had to lock the door and race after his brother.

-------------------------------------

"Duskmon, would you dust off the counter for me? Thank you."

Duskmon, the corrupted digimon of _Darkness_ was reduced to dusting a house for the mother of the chosen warrior of Darkness in order to keep his identity safe. He let out a sigh and obliged, feeling slightly awkward. What would Lowemon say?

Agunimon and the others would laugh, he was certain.

"Mom, we're home!" Kouichi yelled, running in to find Duskmon dusting a lamp with a distasteful look on his face. "D-Duskmon...?"

Ms. Kimura turned to her sons with a bright smile on her face. "Kouichi, Kouji," she greeted the two boys, looking up from dusting the TV.

A snort flew out of Kouji's mouth. Immediately, he patted his brother on the back and whispered, "Good luck explaining." He quickly walked off, bursting into gales of laughter.

Noticing the look of growing anger on Duskmon's face, Kouichi let out a nervous laugh. It would take more work to explain this than he thought. Drawing a breath, he summoned up every ounce of courage he had and murmured, "Mom, I need to tell you something."

His breath hitched when she nodded and placed the duster down. "I know," she murmured softly.

_How do I explain? This is too much_, Kouichi thought, his heart breaking in two at the sight of his mother. "Y-you see, Duskmon is...uh...a digimon. And...a-and well, he's...kind of how I met Kouji," Kouichi started awkwardly.

She was silent, waiting for him to continue. There wasn't the slightest hint of emotion on her face. Tomoki was stolid. It made Kouichi wonder if she was the reason he could do that; she definitely could hold out longer than he could.

"It started a few years ago. Four...yeah. Uh...w-well, I was following Kouji because..." Kouichi stopped. Why _had_ he been following Kouji? Was it because he had wanted the family together again, or was it for his own selfish reasons? He really didn't know. All he knew was that out of impulse, he had followed Kouji. The boy drew a breath and continued, "I followed Kouji, but I didn't really make it into the elevator in time, so I..." He reddened and mumbled the next part silently.

Duskmon covered up his laugh with a snort. "Brilliant, Kouichi," he commented, adding an applause.

The tinge of red still stayed on Kouichi's face. "And then Cherubimon somehow forced me to digivolve into Duskmon, and I had no control over Duskmon, so he did exactly what Cherubimon wanted him to do, which was murder-er...destroy-I mean...well, get rid of Kouji," Kouichi said quickly, noticing his mother's grip around the duster tightening dangerously. Even faster, he related the next few parts, "But Kouji managed to digivolve and beat Duskmon, so I was freed from Cherubimon's control, and then I think he was mad at me after I told him about you and our dad and the divorce and everything-then I got Lowemon and my D-Tector after fighting this sort of shadow of Cherubimon's. See, it's a cool D-Tector." Clumsily, Kouichi yanked his D-Tector out of his pocket, causing Tomoki's to fall to the floor. He winced, picking up the fallen D-Tector and laughing nervously. His heart was pounding in his chest as he showed his mother both. "S-see," stuttered the boy, "this one is Tomoki's and this one is mine."

Kouichi felt sick to his stomach. He felt like he had stolen a cookie from the cookie jar and ended up breaking it on accident. And to cover up his mistake, he had eaten all the cookies and saved two in his pocket. But it was obvious that he had done it-there were chocolate stains all over his mouth. He hadn't actually done that as a child, but the more the silence grew, the more he felt like he had.

Realizing he hadn't related the rest of the story, Kouichi stuffed the D-Tectors back in his pocket. "Oh, and Duskmon's good now, if you can call him good. H-he's disappearing...because...of some problems, so that's why he's visible and the others aren't. And I lost part of my fractal code, but I got it back and I can see them...all..." He grew nervous as his mother stepped towards him, growing closer by the second. Swallowing, Kouichi clenched his hands into fists, trying to inflict pain to himself by stomping on his left foot with his right foot so the tears at the corner of his eyes wouldn't spill.

Stopping in front of her son, Ms. Kimura sighed. In one smooth movement, she slapped Kouichi across the head, a small frown on her face. "I tell you to relax, and you worry. I tell you to not endanger yourself, and you do. You always do the opposite of what I tell you to, Kouichi, thinking that it'll make everything easier for me. Don't you know it only makes things worse?" she lectured him softly. "And please, if you're going to deal with the likes of..." Looking up at Duskmon, she rose an eyebrow and wondered how to term him.

"Duskmon," the digimon and Kouichi offered in unison.

Not really caring for the name, Ms. Kimura continued, "Yes, Duskmon. If you're going to deal with things like him, at _least_ don't leave this world without my permission." A smile broke through her frown and she placed a hand on Kouichi's head, ruffling his hair affectionately. "And clean up your room. It's a mess," she added, disappearing into the kitchen.

Kouichi held back his tears as he turned around to Duskmon. "I...It worked," he mumbled, amazed. The digimon just shrugged, trying to hide his own excitement. But by some connection, Kouichi knew his exact feelings. "Oh come on, Duskmon," the boy laughed, "_you're_ happy, too."

"Happy you didn't screw up," Duskmon retorted, folding his arms and looking away grumpily.

It didn't take long for Kouichi to really understand how Duskmon worked. Ashamed of his feelings, thinking it would cause all his strength to seep away, Duskmon hid his true self behind a hard shell of cold darkness. There was only one other person that Kouichi compare him to.

_No wonder Kouji hates him so much_.

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"Yes. Okay. B-but meet with him? Isn't that kind of soon?" Kouji slammed his hand down on the textbook in front of him. "It _is_ soon! That's stupid! Don't threaten me with Biology homework! Argh...you're worse than Kako and Hideki combined! Yes, I know that's disgusting, but _you_ misinterpreted it!" he snapped into the phone. There was loud laughing coming from the other side of the line. Positively irritated, Kouji hung up, muttering, "Why her?"

A knock on the door startled Kouji, causing him to push over a stack of papers onto the floor. He barely managed to stop their fall. "C-come in."

Kouichi walked in with a tired, but happy smile.

Stacking the papers back up on the desk, Kouji asked, "It worked?"

Falling down on his brother's bed, Kouichi chuckled, "Do I really need to say?" He sat up and noticed the phone. "Made a call?"

Kouji nodded. He didn't want to explain, but she had told him to. "Ms. Kawai...called for a digi-meeting today," he muttered with some difficulty.

"Where is it?"

"Kako's house."

The older boy froze. Shifting uncomfortably on the bed before standing up, he mumbled, "Oh. Um, so I have to go?" Eyes glued to the ground, Kouichi prayed he didn't.

Kouji rose an eyebrow. "You don't want to go to Kako's house? Why?" he asked, suddenly intrigued by Kouichi's sudden change in mood. Naturally, he would have thought that his brother would have loved to go over to the Sakai residence. It surprised him greatly that it was in fact the opposite.

Cheeks flushed a faint tint of red, Kouichi mumbled, "Well, her stepfather came home...and...um, so I wasn't very welcome there, you see. So you understand perfectly, right?" Kouichi put on a bright smile. "Just tell her I had some difficulty making it there because...uh...I...I got caught up talking to Saito in the bookstore or something!" he suggested instead.

Rolling his eyes, Kouji stood up and grabbed the back of his brother's green jacket, yanking him back in the room. "Aren't you _forgetting_ something?" asked the bandana boy, voice icy.

"Forgetting something?" Kouichi repeated dumbly. A second later, his mouth hung open. Since when was he one to be so elusive, or clueless for that matter? _Another sign of this whole mess_, he thought, turning away from his brother and shutting his eyes. "Oh, yeah, um, give Tomoki his D-Tector for m-"

Angrily turning his brother around again, Kouji screamed, "_YOU_ give it to him!" Amazed at his brother's sudden lack of control, Kouichi stared at the younger twin, blinking and awaiting an answer. Again, weaker than before, Kouji snapped, "You give it to him. You have to go, okay? I hate being the only one who actually understands. I can't take this alone. You have to go." He repeated himself again, twice more before Kouichi whacked his head. The younger twin scowled. "What was that for?" he snapped.

Kouichi hid a smirk. Taking out Tomoki's D-Tector, he replied, "For being a broken record. Is everyone else going to be there?"

"She's calling them right now. Oh, and then we get to surprise Hideki and Kako by dropping over as a group. She said if we bring cake, Kako will cave in, and that's more than enough with you around. Oh, did I just say that?" Kouji asked, voice heavy with sarcasm. Folding his arms and gazing up at the ceiling, he commented, "Wow, my tongue's going crazy today."

"You...darn...bandana brain!" Kouichi screamed, lunging at his brother, hands outstretched to clamp onto the younger boy's throat.

Wide-eyed, Kouji let out a yell as the collision came, along with severe tickling and demands for an apology.

Meanwhile, from the door, Duskmon watched the two brothers as the tables turned and Kouji managed to throw his brother off, threatening to burn his cap when he found it at Kako's house. Kouichi threatened to immediately burn all of his brother's bandanas, and the two boys burst out into laughter. The complexity of the simplicity of human emotion greatly amazed Duskmon. Had it been that, the entire time he had been a separate entity from that of Lowemon, there was an emotion that had driven him to go straight to Ophanimon and ask her to allow him to help Kouichi? Was he like the others?

Was he…weak?

-------------------------------------

Tomoki breathed a sigh of relief, staring at the package in front of him. He had gotten it well before February, but had yet to open it. It had come for him from his brother Yutaka, who had happened to be going to a fancy private school. Tomoki didn't complain and didn't really mind, either. Sure, it was lonely, but his brother deserved it.

It had all been so sudden. One moment, Tomoki was on the computer, ready to stop staring blankly at his inbox, and the next, his brother had e-mailed him, saying he had found something that Tomoki might be interested in.

Shinya had picked up the package and delivered it safely, but Tomoki knew that anything Yutaka sent would be of great importance and so waited for the correct time to open it.

Now was the time. He was sure. The meeting, the package...perhaps he could open it there. Drawing a breath, he picked up the book and called out, "I'm going out! I'll be back for dinner!" He knew his parents would hear. Of course they'd care, they just wouldn't say anything, wanting him to be happy.

Sometimes, he had realized what Yutaka had forgotten to mention when they were younger. Being a 'spoiled' son was worth everything.

-------------------------------------

Kouji finally managed to convince his brother to come to Kako's house. They found Rai, Izumi, Takuya and Junpei in front of the Sakai residence. Izumi and Takuya were caught up in a romantic moment, Junpei in a book, and Ms. Kawai was staring at her watch impatiently. At the sound of their footsteps, however, she looked up and managed a relieved smile. "Well, that leaves Tomoki," she commented, dropping her hand to her side.

"Don't leave _me_ out!"

The twins turned around and found Shinya beaming at them. Kouji let out a snicker and pointed to Takuya. Trying hard not to laugh, Kouji asked, "You brought your brother along?"

Reddening, Takuya pulled away from Izumi and stormed up to his brother. Before he could do anything, Izumi cleared her throat, placing her hands on her hips. Takuya reluctantly sulked away from his brother and instead beside Kouji. "I can't pummel him for an entire month," he grumbled.

"Ooh, nice, Izumi. Penguin suit will come soon. As soon as I figure out where I left it," Kouji murmured, staring at the sky thoughtfully.

"Hey, Shinya, where's Tomoki?" Kouichi asked, slightly worried. The youngest of the gang had never been so late before. Kouichi turned to fully face Shinya and ask again, "Wasn't he with you today?"

Shinya nodded, walking up to Junpei and ducking his head under the book to find the title. "He had to grab something at home before coming here, though. We got the call about ten minutes ago. I think he stored it away and forgot where it was..." Standing up straight, Shinya stuck his tongue out at Junpei. "Ew, Shakespeare," he muttered, pinching his nose shut.

To counter, Junpei made a face. "It's homework. Why don't you try reading it?" snapped the older boy, slamming the book shut and looking away angrily.

Kouichi just shook his head as the two began to argue. "Hey, Ms. Kawai. Hideki doesn't know?" he asked softly, staring up at the cloudy sky.

Giggling, Rai shook her head. "No, I know Gen is here and all, but that's just too bad for them. Besides, my place is...small, and I wouldn't want to bother any of your parents. Not only that, but it's convenient that Hideki and Kako both live here," she replied, leaning against the wall adjacent to the door.

"Sorry I'm late!"

Everyone turned to a panting Tomoki who held a package wrapped in brown paper in his hands. He straightened up and nodded to Kouichi slightly. A small piece suddenly clicked in Kouichi's mind and he brought out Tomoki's D-Tector, throwing it to the boy. "Kind of strange, considering we have yet to see Kumamon," he commented. Another piece clicked, and he winced, bringing out Marise's diary. Stiffly turning to Rai for help, he muttered, "Where's a brain when you need it?"

Rai winced as well. "Is that-"

"Yes," Kouichi answered quickly, putting away the diary.

"Oh, you really don't have your brain when you need it. Keep it out of Kako's reach and Hideki's eyes. He'll ruin us all and claim you're trying to give it to Kako," she muttered. Turning to the rest, she announced, "Okay, let's go! Who brought the cake to bribe Kako?"

Silence descended upon the group. "You were serious?" Takuya asked in a weak voice, turning pale. Kouji whacked the boy, yanking on the goggles, an action at which Takuya angrily responded to by kicking Kouji's shin.

Rai rolled her eyes and knocked on the door. To her luck, Hideki answered and she pushed him back inside and shut the door. Kouji stared at the door, an exasperated look on his face. Everyone else reddened considerably. A second later, Rai opened the door, a perfectly innocent and calm look on her face. "What's with you people? Get inside! And stop thinking...whatever you're thinking! All I did was take Kako's approach to the matter," she said defensively, fully opening the door to reveal a limping Hideki.

_Who learns from who?_ Kouichi shook his head and waited until everyone else was inside before timidly taking a step towards the door. After a few more seconds, Kouji stormed out and dragged Kouichi in. "You're coming in too!" growled the bandana boy furiously.

Once inside, Kouichi found Piximon examining Hideki's shin. "Did she kick really, _really_ hard?" came Kako's voice.

Suddenly embarrassed, Kouichi turned around to face the front door, tempted to run out and not come back. He had no idea how Kouji had managed to convince him to come. It must have been guilt, or idiocy, or-

"Hi Kouichi!"

Kouichi froze.

"Is he okay?" Kako asked, concerned.

Kouji stifled a laugh. The older twin tensed. Coughing instead, he replied, "He's...just...upset about Duskmon..."

Relaxing his shoulders, Kouichi let out a sigh.

Mercilessly, Kouji added, "And he's just completely embarrassed to be here. Nothing else." After this, he burst out laughing.

Kouichi turned around, furiously looking at the ground as a blush flew up to warm his cheeks. "L-let's just hurry this up," he muttered, storming into the living room and taking a seat by the end, placing his elbow up on the arm of the couch. The other arm rested by his side while his gaze was focused on the wall above Hideki.

Kako rolled her eyes and sat beside him. "Weirdo."

"You _still_ didn't ask, did you?" Kouichi countered, turning to her with a glare on his face. All traces of the blush had vanished.

"Ask what?" Hideki inquired, trying to kick Piximon away as the digimon poked Hideki's shin with his staff.

Now her turn to blush, Kako blurted, "NOTHING!" The entire room stared at her. She laughed nervously and motioned to the couch. "Have a seat. I'll go...see what we have to eat," mumbled the girl awkwardly, dashing into the kitchen.

Rolling her eyes, Rai sat down beside Hideki, pushing him over slightly so he wouldn't take up so much space. As soon as everyone took a seat, she placed her hands in her lap. There was a knock at the door, and she took it as a sign to murmur, "Very well. Let's start."

-------------------------------------

A dream. These past years had been a dream. But the dream had shattered. He had wanted to wake up. He had wanted to end the dream. He found reality. Harsh, cruel reality. It suited him well.

The man chuckled as he nearly tripped over his own feet. It was because of reality that he wanted to dream. It was because of the dreaming he wanted to be back in reality. It was an endless circle, one that would never end. Quite befitting of his name, as he often thought.

There was a small smile on his face. Cheerfully, he knocked on the door, nearly crashing to the floor when he found his leg refused to support him. Well, she had always told him how weak he was and he had always laughed it off in turn. He only supposed that a dream had made him weaker. To live in a world that wasn't his own, to have lived a lie...he was suffering the results of that.

No one answered the door. Not the least bit bothered, the man rung the doorbell. This time, the door was opened. "Hello, Gen," the man greeted the person at the door. "I hope you don't mind my intrusion, but it seems there's a meeting being held here that requires my attention."

Silence met him.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

I have several stories to relate. One, One Piece finished off Chopper's story beautifully. I loved it-made me want to cry. Two, IGPX season one is finished! They should have cut the story off there, even if I would have been disappointed. But it was a really good ending. Three, I realized several things about TK that I didn't before. I've said this many times to other people, and I'll tell it to you guys-missing one episode of Digimon is missing a LOT.

Kouichi's explanation was difficult to write. And does it ever say what grade Yutaka is in? I think it might. He looks like he's in high school in the series...probably a college student, but I couldn't find any info. It's little characters like Yutaka that really matter, and when I don't get details right about them, I get depressed. It's strange, but I managed to wash away a lot of hurt and depression with this chapter. I think that's why the chapter has a lot more meaning than usual, especially with Duskmon and Kouji. Shortly after writing about Kouichi explaining to his mother, my mom called me to grate the carrots. I did...the wrong size. So she started yelling at me, and I got depressed about that. It's really very stupid, my life. Yesterday was utterly boring. I had no one to talk to.

I tried updating today, which will become yesterday when you read this, and Fanfiction was being annoying and not letting me upload the document. So it's late. I'm going to sleep now. Review responses will be tomorrow. Hopefully so will Mirai, Ishy.

I will warn you now (and you will thank me): NEVER SLEEP AT TWELVE AFTER WAKING UP AT 5:30. Especially two days in a row. But I did Chem homework with Aurel and Pekkle and Pekkle's house! Thank you both.

THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS (that made me happy)-

**Snowy Leopardess, Lady Hikari-Yami, Winter's Light, Catwarrior, GemmaniGirl, WithBrokenWings, The Light's Refrain**

Review or PM or Flame.


	14. Intellectuals

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Intellectuals

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"Who's at the door?" Hideki called from the couch. Much to Kouichi's amazement (as well as everyone else's), Hideki had left Rai alone the entire time.

Gen stood at the doorway, completely still. All Hideki could see was Gen's knuckles whitening as he clenched the doorknob tighter. The man was blocking the doorway, silent, almost visibly shaking.

Rai seemed to be having a hard time hiding the smile that occasionally appeared on her face. Suddenly raising an eyebrow, Hideki turned to Rai and asked, "Expecting guests?" She nodded, trying harder to suppress the insistent laugh.

A wary feeling cast a heavy fog over the room. It was an unbreakable spell of silence. Kouichi could practically taste it.

"Do you guys want anything to eat? It would have been nice if you br-why are you all so quiet?" Kako suddenly asked. She peered her head out from the kitchen, staring at Gen. "Well, let them in! Whoever it is...I mean, you don't want their legs to lock, do you?" The girl walked towards the door, opening it fully and pushing Gen aside. "Oh, hi Mr. Saito. Did you hurt your leg?" Kako asked, walking back to the kitchen.

Hideki turned a furious shade of crimson as he faced Rai. Eyes wide, he turned back to Mr. Saito. The young man sank back in his seat and groaned, "Rai, you're trying to kill me, aren't you? Why do you do this...?"

The wary feeling in Kouichi was replaced by a freezing storm. Immediately seeing who it was, he rose to his feet. He was numbing over, slowly, but surely. Mr. Saito looked different. Limping, an aged look-but his eyes...Kouichi understood now. What they had said, what he was seeing...it all pieced together.

Another piece of the puzzle fit beautifully, revealing the horrific truth. It was only one of the many he had suffered, and yet this one had a certain foreboding to it.

Bowing stiffly, Kouichi murmured, "M-Mr. Saito. It's...nice to see you."

Awkwardness filled the room. Rai broke it, standing up and turning to Kouichi's previous mentor. "I believe it's time," she said bluntly.

Mr. Saito nodded. "Very well, very well. Everyone sit down. Gen, you'll have to excuse me for intruding. You see, _your_ children play a very important role in our meeting, and what with there being the two of them in the same house, why not hold the meeting here?" the man said in a soft voice, a kind smile coming to his lips.

There was a twist to it, and Kouichi wondered if he was the only one who could see. Everyone else seemed to be staring blankly. He found himself joining them, staring into Saito's seemingly endless eyes and trying to pry out the secret of this change. Or was it a change? He wasn't sure about anything. All he knew was Kouji would know. _But why Kouji_? Kouichi frowned as if trying to recall something.

"Well, I'll go get Kako and-Kouichi, you _do_ know you can sit now, right?"

Rai's voice pierced through Kouichi's thoughts. Embarrassed, he nodded and took a seat, sinking back to hide his flushed face.

Mr. Saito took Rai's seat. "Very well. Where shall we begin our math lesson for the day?"

The youngest boy present jumped to his feet. "MATH?" Shinya screamed, "I thought this was an important meeting! You know, those secret agencies, all those cool stuff! Why _math_?"

Takuya chuckled and folded his arms across his chest as he lay back on the couch. Obviously amused by his brother's behavior, he situated himself beside Izumi and shut his eyes. "Tell me when they're done, will you 'zumi?" he murmured.

Rolling her eyes, Izumi whacked Takuya's arm. "Shinya, come back. You'll get something informational out of this," she told him.

"That's what you said about the _lion_, and Takuya and I nearly got eaten," the boy returned in a disappointed voice, sulking back to sit beside his brother.

Walking to the center of the room, Mr. Saito placed on a pair of glasses and cleared his throat. "Alright then. Who knows why we determine the axis of symmetry for a parabola by the formula negative 'b' over two 'a'?" he asked.

-------------------------------------

There was one thing that Kouichi knew; Mr. Saito knew his math well. He also managed to discover the purpose of the entire lecture. Although the material covered in it was real, it was just a cover. Shinya slowly began to fall asleep, and Gen went to his room immediately. Kako and Rai came back with refreshments, and even Hideki began to doze off. Beside him, Kouichi found his brother nodding off, fighting to stay awake. The effects were interesting, at the least, but ultimately useful.

Eventually, though, the lecture came to a stop and all took their time to observe the outcomes.

"Are we done now, Saito? I think this is enough," Rai commented, frowning at a sleeping Takuya.

Through a yawn, Hideki replied, "We ought to give them a test, though."

Rai returned a sour look. "Like they say-like father, like son." The look of distaste turned into a small smile when Kako shot her a confused look. _Can't say, can I?_ She just shook her head and took a seat.

Annoyed at the message that had gotten through to Hideki but not herself, Kako plopped down on the other side of the bandana boy, awaking both twins fully.

"Eh? Hey, Kouji, what are you doing?" Kako asked as the said boy jumped to his feet.

Wordlessly, Kouji walked over and plopped down by Tomoki, holding his hand out. The younger boy stared cluelessly, hand clutched tightly around the packet in his hand. Kouji pointed to the packet. "What's that?" asked the bandana boy.

"Now, now, let's begin. Wake up Takuya, would you, Izumi? Yes...ah, Tomoki, we'll discuss that later," Mr. Saito suddenly said, striding over to the couch where Hideki sat and taking a seat beside the young man. "Let's see..." His ancient eyes swept across the room, landing on each of the children, Hideki, then Rai. "Wake up Shinya, too. He's a valuable asset to us."

Kako shot Kouichi a puzzled glance. In return, Kouichi turned away, pretending to pay attention to Mr. Saito when in actuality, his mind was continuously running over the awkwardness of the situation. "Mr. Saito-"

Completely ignoring Kouichi, Mr. Saito continued, "Rai we'll also need the digimon. Piximon can get them, in fact." The man turned to the digimon, whom had fallen asleep on the table, next to the plate of untouched chips. "Piximon," he demanded sharply, "why are you asleep?"

Startled, Piximon jumped to his feet. "Homework! Y-er...s-sir..." stuttered Piximon, gazing up at Mr. Saito in fright. "Um, I was...keeping Kako up all night to do her homework..."

Kouichi rose an eyebrow, turning to Kako with an amused expression on his face. "On a Friday night...?" he asked. In response, Kako grumbled and looked away.

Mr. Saito looked impatient. "Yes, that's all well and done, now get Duskmon and the others. I don't know how long Gen sleeps. It's been...what? Over-" The man paused as Hideki entered a violent coughing fit. Getting the message, he waved a dismissive hand towards Piximon. "Hurry, Piximon."

Piximon hurriedly flew out, leaving the humans to stare at Mr. Saito. In a manner similar to that of a professor, Mr. Saito stood up, adjusting his glasses and turning to Kouichi. "You have..._that_, yes?" Kouichi nodded, gulping slightly. "Keep it. Show it to no one, especially Hideki," warned Mr. Saito. "Let us get to the point. Lucemon has broken through the gateways to come to the real world. Duskmon is on the verge of fading, and we must quickly get several things done."

"Wait, what's '_that_' that you're talking about?" Kako asked, a hopelessly confused look on her face. She turned to Kouichi for an answer, only to find that he had turned away quickly, hiding his face from her. "Hideki!" the girl called sharply. Even her brother looked away, pretending to be interested in the ceiling. Angrily, Kako stood up, storming to the door. "You know, keep your stupid secrets to yourself! You're all a bunch of ridiculous-"

The last word remained a mystery. At that precise moment, Kako had slammed the door and, Kouichi guessed, ran off. Knowing her as he did, she probably did.

No one seemed shocked a bit, save Kouichi. For the most part, he was surprised by the calm reaction; Kako compared little to that. "A-aren't you worried, sir?" he sputtered, turning to Mr. Saito in shock.

At this, Mr. Saito laughed, "Not at the least! If Kako's anything like Harumi, she'll be perfectly fine! Anyone who decides to bother her will be beaten to a pulp, and she'll be in the back of the bookstore, crying!" Kouichi's eyes grew wider. "But now, business. Piximon seems to have gathered everyone. Duskmon, as useful as it is for you to cross through shadows, it's quite useful for us to see you in your state, as miserable as it may be," the man suddenly commented, turning to the growing shadow of the table.

Duskmon slowly took form out of the shadow, looking morose. "I'm solid. No ghostly form. I'm solid. I feel weak, Marise. I demand a redo! I _refuse_ to become _him_ again!" the digimon growled, withdrawing a blade.

What Kako had told him. '_He could become physical, you know? So, it's best not to even test it_,' she had said. If Duskmon was real, the damage he dealt would be equally real. If he hurt Mr. Saito...

_No, he's Marise,_ Kouichi told him. _But Marise's a ghost. He said so in his diary, didn't he? Technically, he doesn't have a physical form_, the boy reasoned, watching his old mentor hold up a hand.

"Duskmon, what are you thinking? That wouldn't do any damage to me. In the end, the only person who you would hurt the most is Kako, seeing as how there are so many people she loves in this room." Marise Saito chuckled, seeing Duskmon glower furiously before lowering the blade. "Very good." Marise turned to the children and cleared his throat. "The reason this meeting was called was for no reason. Actually, let's get off with some introductions to make it meaningful!" the man suggested, sitting back beside his son. "Of course, you all know me."

'_NO, I'M STILL CONFUSED_!' Kouichi wanted to scream. Grabbing a hold of himself, he asked, "Can't we just...introduce ourselves so I don't become confused any more than I need to?" He felt stupid. He wanted to crawl into a hole and never see the light of day again.

Marise just nodded. "Marise Saito, age unknown to even myself. You know Rai, Hideki, Kako, and I'm positive you all know yourselves. Now, all but Kouichi and Tomoki may leave. Respective digimon included. Rai, why don't you and Hideki go out somewhere? Yes, a fancy restaurant or somewhere that you two can't bother us. Yes, yes, now move. Hurry! Piximon, make sure Gen's shoulder is treated _properly_. Do it while he's asleep. That way he won't scream. Hurry, hurry!" Marise ordered sharply.

Everyone scurried around quickly, as if afraid to find out what would happen if they should cross Mr. Saito. Kouichi watched, confused, as very soon, he and Tomoki were the only two left alone in the room.

"I'm assuming you know why you two are the ones who I wanted to talk to," Marise said softly. He held out a hand, facing Tomoki. "The package, please?" Tomoki automatically complied, seeming frightened that he hadn't refused. Marise just smiled. "Don't worry," he assured the boy, "I'm not going to burn it. You do know what this is, don't you?"

Tomoki shook his head slowly. "All I know is that it's got something to do with the Digital World," he answered slowly.

Nodding, Marise affirmed his suspicions, "Correct. And I'm leaving you in charge of it. Make sure it does not fall into the wrong hands. We've had a bad habit with that in the past, but I'm sure you'll take good care of it. And keep your D-Tector with you at all times. You may need it." Although he looked amused, the note in Marise's voice and the glint in his eyes were enough to convince Tomoki that he was serious.

"I...I will," he mumbled, looking down at his feet. _Can I? Everyone else would do a better job,_ he thought miserably, failing to summon up the courage to truly accept. A hand laid itself on his shoulder, and Tomoki looked up to find Kouichi smiling at him. A bit more confident, he nodded and turned to Marise. "I will," he confirmed again.

"Good." Marise held the book out for Tomoki to take. "Then we'll have another meeting some time soon. Kouichi, you will come with me. Tomoki, you are free to leave."

Tomoki practically raced out of the house after grabbing his book. Kouichi could sense that, despite his earlier confidence, Tomoki was still worried about the burden that had been placed on him. _He'll do fine,_ the boy assured himself. _Tomoki's brave_. He turned to Marise and inclined his head. "Sir."

"Kouichi, I have a lot to talk to you about. How about...a slow walk to the bookstore?" suggested the man as he stood up, a small smile on his face.

Wordlessly, Kouichi nodded, knowing very well Duskmon would be following along the shadows, Lowemon right behind him.

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"So, you've read the diary?" It wasn't so much a question as a statement. Nevertheless, Kouichi nodded silently, eyes glued to the sidewalk just ahead of him. Marise chuckled deeply, "So, have you asked Kako anything?"

At the mention of Kako, Kouichi's brain began to wander. He managed to pull himself together to admit, "She's...quite confusing. I'm barely putting together all the facts. If you don't mind, what exactly _is_ the entire shadow system?"

Had Kouichi looked up, he would have noticed the dark shadow that seemed to come across Marise's face. Quietly, Marise whispered, "The shadow system is incredibly complex, even with its simplicity. It can change at it's own will. You see, its complexity is why Kako was unable to explain it correctly. The shadow system is simply existent because the Digital World is parallel to our own world. This parallel is existent not only because the worlds themselves are parallel, but also the inhabitants are. Each digimon has a parallel human, and vice versa.

"That is the simplicity. There are an equal number of inhabitants on each world. What makes it so complex are the babies that are born each day and the number of deaths. For example, we can take Hideki. Angemon returned to be reborn, but he remained unscathed. Even the shadow system has its glitches. There are times when one isn't meant to die. In that case, the shadow switches; although the digimon or human dies, its shadow remains. In the case where the human dies, a newborn baby will receive the digimon as their shadow. In the case where the digimon dies, the human will have the same digimon shadow that will be reborn as a digi-egg. That is Hideki's case.

"Many times, the shadow system is a complex and changing system. It is unpredictable. I cannot be sure that I still hold Seraphimon as my shadow, nor can I be sure that Kako is a Gatomon's or any form close to Ophanimon's. There can be signs, such as the feathers in Aizawa's office. I warned him not to go that day, and he's been at home ever since, claiming he has a cold. Well, he's never been too fond of me..." Marise paused. "But forgive my babbling. Is there anything else you wish to know?" he inquired.

"No matter what," Kouichi said slowly, "there are always the same number of inhabitants? Everyone has a parallel?" He looked up and Marise nodded. "And Duskmon and Lowemon?"

A chuckle escaped Marise "An irregularity on your part. Not many people have split personalities that can become dangerously real," he told the boy with a hint of amusement.

Kouichi reddened visibly and turned his gaze back to the ground. "Okay," he mumbled. "Then...your diary. Um, would you like it back, sir?" He couldn't anticipate the answer. All Kouichi wanted to do was get the diary off his hands. His mind steadily chanted for Marise to affirm the question.

The chant died as if a giant wave crashed down on Kouichi, drowning him. "No, keep it," Marise had told him as soon as they stopped in front of the bookstore. "And about Kako...do you honestly plan to date her?"

If Kouichi had been red, he was beyond crimson by now. Dating had never been what he thought about. Starting to think about it made him feel dizzy. "I...uh...well, see, sir, um..." he stuttered, unsure of what to say. _No_, his head suddenly told him. _No, you have to wait. Wait, Kouichi. We have to be sure._ All hesitation ceased to exist for a mere moment. He looked up at Marise and shook his head. Although he wasn't hesitating, his breath hitched as he confessed, "I don't think...not yet. Maybe...soon."

"Brilliant decision. Yes, yes, and she can go to Hawaii."

"Isn't that technically Hideki and Mr. Sakai's decision?" Kouichi asked curiously.

Marise laughed at this. "Yes," he admitted, "but Hideki would let her if I told him to and as for Gen...well, I'll deal with him later! Now...where is that girl...?" Frowning slightly, Marise opened the door and walked inside, not bothering to wait for Kouichi to follow him. "Ah, Kako, there you are. I didn't know you were interested in any of my books."

Kako put the book in her hands down and crossed her arms, shrugging. "I guess...I was just bored," she mumbled, not meeting anyone's eyes.

Swallowing, Kouichi murmured, "If you could, Kako, would you really...go to Hawaii for me?" he suddenly blurted, hands clenching by his sides nervously. He met Kako's eyes, determination shining in his own while hers seemed blank and withholding more meaning. Kouichi could tell she was definitely considering the question-a good sign.

"Y-yeah, I guess. Hideki has a friend there. And-and...well, I don't know. I guess," she replied lamely. Her gaze shifted from Mr. Saito to Kouichi, unsure of why Kouichi was asking now. The look on both of their faces didn't help ease her worries either.

Kouichi turned to Marise, a triumphant smile on his face. "So Hideki would let her go?" he asked eagerly. Marise nodded. "Good. Have fun at Hawaii, then," Kouichi told Kako. "I'll get the ticket to you on Monday."

Horrified, Kako gazed at him. "W-wait! Hideki said I could?" she asked, shocked. When Kouichi nodded, Kako let out a curse and raced out the door. "Where the hell is he?"

Alone once more, Marise and Kouichi exchanged glances. "Was her mother this violent?" Kouichi asked, amazed.

Marise let out a laugh. "Harumi was definitely energetic!"

"And they say 'Like father, like son,'" Kouichi muttered. Making a face, he muttered, "What about 'Like mother, like daughter?"

Marise laughed some more before he made his way behind the counter. "Anything else you'd like to know?" he asked, chuckling slightly.

"Yeah...about...that light when Kako and I went out to the restaurant," Kouichi asked slowly.

Shutting his eyes, Marise replied, "My doing. I told Rai to do it, anyway. You see, we had business to discuss about you. And, seeing as she wasn't getting my point, I told her to send a small concentration of light at you two. Kako magnified it, and let's just say your second self was more clear to her."

"Oh...I get it," Kouichi mumbled. "Girls are weird."

"I agree, very much."

"They're almost all alike. Well, Kako and Ms. Kawai, anyway."

"Yes, that's true-Kako and Rai, that is."

"They're confusing."

"That they are. Strange to marry them."

"Hideki's just weird, too."

"That, I cannot deny."

"And his methods of training are, too."

Again, Marise nodded in agreement.

The two sighed and stared blankly at the counter they stood by. Finally, Marise stood up straight, cleared his throat and asked, "So...shall we give your new abilities a test?"

A grin replaced the poker face Kouichi had previously put on. Nodding, he murmured, "I'm ready to win this round."

"Alas, I doubt you'll win. Even with my little age trick wearing off, you don't have half the skills," Marise challenged. He smiled as Kouichi just grinned in response. Marise chuckled, "Then, let's go."

-------------------------------------

Tomoki tightened his grip around the square package in his hands. He knew what it was. He knew what it contained. As to whether he could still read it, he knew not. Tomoki wanted, more than anything, to be fearless and not worry about taking care of it, but the fact was, he was scared. The prospect of a job such as this aroused the childish cowardice in him that he had always had. _Yutaka was right,_ the boy thought glumly, sitting down on a swing, hands tightening further around the package. _They spoiled me too much_.

He always thought he had changed. _I'm still the same, though,_ Tomoki realized. Despite his _want_ to change, his mind remained as it did four years ago. Four years had done nothing to change him. Four years...and Tomoki Himi was still a baby.

But he had to have changed! Why would Takuya trust Shinya around him so often if he hadn't? Nothing seemed to make sense. He was feeling burdened by the task. He wanted to be free.

"Hey."

"T-Takuya," Tomoki stuttered, looking up to find his idol staring down at him. Nothing really _had_ changed much these past four years. He always had looked up to Takuya since the Digital World, and he still did. The cowardly feeling throbbed, evoking guilt and tears. "I...I don't want to do this," he confessed softly.

Where there was Takuya, there was Izumi, and almost always Shinya. Tomoki could be sure Izumi had seen him and asked Takuya to talk to him. It made him feel even worse. He was weak. He was probably even weighing them down.

Takuya just shook his head, removing his goggles and placing them in Tomoki's hands. "Put these on," he ordered. Tomoki gazed blankly at Takuya, blinking through his tears. Takuya scowled, "I know they might be sweaty, but just put 'em on, I swear, it'll help you!"

Somewhat reluctantly, Tomoki slipped the goggles on his head, wincing as they fell down onto his nose. He had intended to put them on as Takuya so often did. But no matter how many times Tomoki pulled up the goggles, they constantly fell back down. "Th-they won't stay up," he stated stupidly.

"Yeah, well, just goes to show, Tomoki. Sometimes, we can't have what we want. We'll be stuck in our situation, no way out of it. Look through the goggles. Can you see clearly?" Takuya asked gently.

It all made sense. What Takuya was trying to say was wonderful. Tomoki smiled. The view was as clear with the goggles on as without them. "Yup!" he replied, cheering up even more every second.

Chuckling, Takuya replied, "So you know what I'm going to say. You just need to adjust, Tomoki. Make the best of your situation. Don't let it get to you." Smiling, he ruffled the younger boy's hair.

"Thanks, Takuya," Tomoki mumbled, suddenly flushing in an embarrassed manner. He was weighing them down by _worrying_. He wouldn't depend on them any longer. They were depending on _him_ now. He wouldn't dare let them down.

Takuya laughed. "Yeah, no problem. And, um...Tomoki?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I have my goggles back? I'm starting to miss them already," he confessed in a whisper.

Suddenly, Tomoki burst out into laughter as he took off the goggles. Takuya, no matter what the situation, would remain his idol forever. And yet, it surprised him. The boy whom he considered to be the bravest was also a mere boy. Takuya, Kouji, Kouichi, Junpei...all of them were like second older brothers to him. They were as normal as he was. They got through their problems, and he would get through his.

Tomoki was going to make it. He wouldn't let anyone touch the book. They were counting on him. For once, they were counting on him.

He wouldn't dare let them down.

-------------------------------------

Kako quietly edged towards the door, careful to keep silent.

"...told you to get it from him!"

"Sorry, not my fault I don't know what he looks like."

Those voices, she knew them. Her breath caught, Kako shifted even closer to the door. Her heart was hammering at her chest, adrenaline was rushing through her. If she could just hear more...

"Hurry up and get it! You know what he looks like, fool! The...the younger boy! I don't care about his name! I've pointed him out to you before and if you make me do it again, you'll regret it, Fujitaka."

_Fujitaka?_ Kako's eyes widened. _Fujitaka works for...I _think_ that's Kanaye's voice_.

The cold voice continued, "And get rid of the trash. It stinks."

"Y-yes sir."

"No, no, never mind. You concentrate on the book. I'll work on this," he snapped irritably.

Kako withheld a gasp as footsteps could be heard. There was nowhere to run. She was as good as caught. _Busted,_ the girl realized. _I should have just stalked Rai and Hideki_.

"Hello, Kako."

Kako shut her eyes, not wanting to face defeat. "Nice to see you, too..." Her eyes opened somewhat reluctantly, focusing on the smug figure in front of her.

"Kanaye."

-------------------------------------

A/N-

I have no excuse for posting late! Which really sucks. But one, I had no idea what the meeting should be about, two, I didn't start it until about three days ago and three, I was caught up in helping a friend with her history project. Thus, the title 'Intellectuals' for the chapter. Go Russian Revolution?

But I'm back on track! Kind of. I'm ahead in terms of Chem homework and behind in Math, meaning I might have to lay off of writing to catch up. I'm kind of getting sick of failing Math. -.- So...yeah. I'm trying my best to balance everything. Giving up even _more_ videogame time. My mom'll be leaving to visit my grandma on Tuesday, so less naggers! That's bad, because I'm going to have to be in charge. Never trust the boys to do the work (the boys who I know, anyway). Also the reason I'm helping my friend. We finished up her project. And I still have to work on mine! Hahaha-that's bad.

So I'm sorry for my horrid slacking skills! Really hoped you liked this chapter and promise not to make you wait this long again, so hold back your hyenas, please? Save them for when I don't update the next chapter soon enough. (I hope I can update soon enough).

Thank You SO MUCH FOR THE REVIEWS-

**Catwarrior, GemmaniGirl, Winter's Light, WithBrokenWings, YinYang HikariYami**

Review or PM or Flame.


	15. Now Is The Time

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Now Is The Time

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"Lowemon, Duskmon. You guys can come out," Kouichi called out, wondering why the two digimon kept to the shadows.

Looking slightly embarrassed, Lowemon stepped out of the shadows, kneeling before Marise as he walked into the room, gently shutting the door. The bookstore owner look seemed to flow back into him as he frowned disapprovingly at Lowemon. "Get up, get up," he ordered irritably. Turning to Kouichi, he murmured, "You know we're holding much more from you, don't you, Kouichi? To make up for that fact, we must hone your skills until they cannot be improved further without you having to be reborn. We need you at your full potential, no matter what. Even when Duskmon fades physically, you will still be able to spirit evolve to him. And that is why we must make sure you are ready, no matter what."

Kouichi nodded, ignoring the fact that a grumpy Duskmon had just materialized from the shadow of a table in the corner. He concentrated as Marise pulled out two bokuto from a rack. He tossed one to Kouichi and kept the other resting in a comfortable grip in his right hand. Kouichi caught it, slightly fumbling as he attempted to find his grip.

"What is the purpose of a bokuto?" Marise asked softly. A second later, he appeared in front of Kouichi.

He knew he had no chance of winning. Kouichi swallowed and replied, "To enhance focus in Aikido. It's also used for kendo practice to get used to the curve of a blade and practice strokes. A shinai, on the other hand, are straight and unsuitable for that purpose." He barely blocked the attack. With the speed Marise actually possessed, Kouichi would be lucky to come out unscathed. There was the possibility of trying out Lowemon or Duskmon, but at the moment, Kouichi doubted that Marise wanted him to prove _their_ strength.

The man jumped back, landing lightly on his feet. "Good," he murmured. "From now on, you'll be using this bokuto instead of your actual sword. In the case of fighting an enemy, you will _still_ use the bokuto. You will not digivolve. Give me your D-Tector."

A horrible feeling bubbled in the bottom of Kouichi's stomach. He reluctantly pulled his D-Tector out of his pocket and handed it to Marise. "Okay," he whispered, looking at the floor. Something seemed to be wrenched out of him, something important.

Marise must have noticed Kouichi's discontent. "Now," he told the boy, "don't give me that attitude. This is merely training, Kouichi. In place of your D-Tector, I'll give you a storage device. It's one of our earlier prototypes of the D-Tector. Not suitable for spirit evolution, though. It has just enough space for your bokuto." As he said this, Marise pulled out a white device from his pocket and handed it to Kouichi. "Carry it with you at all times. You'll need it."

Glumly, Kouichi accepted the device and turned to Duskmon and Lowemon. They were too preoccupied with another heated argument to notice. Looking back at Marise, he asked, "So I always have to carry around this..." He searched his mind for a suitable name. "This...digivice?"

"Yes."

"Alright," Kouichi mumbled. "Does this mean I don't have to train with Hideki anymore?" he suddenly asked a bit too eagerly.

At this, Marise chuckled, "No. Saturday lessons with Hideki, weekdays with me." Kouichi sagged his shoulders, slowly falling into laughter along with Marise.

But in the back of his mind, something nagged him. He was sure something wasn't right. _But what...?_ Kouichi could only imagine.

-------------------------------------

Kako was about to scream when Kanaye covered her mouth, pinning her against the wall. _Why? Why did I have to stumble upon him of all people?_ Desperately, she raised her foot, preparing to bring it down on Kanaye, somewhere, anywhere. He caught her foot; she was rendered helpless. _So much for being the hero for once_, Kako thought as he yanked her feet from under her, causing the girl to crash to the floor. Angrily, she stood up and growled, "Didn't anyone ever tell you? Don't hit a girl...they hit _harder_!" Kako tried another kick, aiming it for his head.

Kanaye dodged it easily. Again, he swept Kako's feet from under her, this time catching her arm and softening her fall. "But I didn't hit you, Kako," he told her in an all too sweet voice. If there was one thing she hated, it was Kanaye's mock innocence. She scowled as he held a hand out to help her up. "Now, Kako," Kanaye murmured, "if you play nice, I will, too."

_What the heck. Why not? I'll catch him when his guard's down_, she decided, not accepting his hand and instead standing up herself. He just pushed her back down and held out his hand again. "What is _with_ you?" she growled angrily, reluctantly accepting his hand.

He chuckled, turning around sharply after letting go of her hand. "Follow me, and don't think of running away. Did you think that by following me here you could find some information to report back to your beloved Kouichi?" he sneered, walking briskly.

Kako practically had to run to keep up with him. "Maybe," she snapped defensively.

After a moments silence, he confessed, "You very nearly got away with it. I wouldn't have known if Ai hadn't called me. I guess I do owe her that dinner." He fell into a thoughtful silence.

_Ai? Ew, so they're going out? Oh, what am I saying? This is perfect,_ Kako wanted to laugh aloud. Instead, she just smiled. "Oh, so are you two going out?" she asked politely.

"Unfortunately," was the dry answer.

_Sorry, Kouichi_. Wanting to cringe, Kako placed a hand on Kanaye's back. "You deserve better," she said softly. _You deserve a trashcan, that's what you do. And Ai's worse than one, so it's good_. "Poor boy..." It took all her self control to keep her eyes on his when Kanaye turned around.

"Sakai, are you feeling well?" Kanaye asked, eyebrow raised.

"Perfectly. Why?" she responded, suddenly snaking both hands around his neck. _This is disgusting,_ Kako thought. _He sweats a _lot.

Kanaye seemed as if his brain stopped functioning. For once, all Kako could see was a normal boy rather than the annoying rival he had been to her for quite a while. The fact was getting to her, and she was sure that if it kept going, she would be the one off guard. Instead, with the constant chant of '_Kanaye is your rival_,' in her head, she managed to keep to her senses. Kanaye, on the other hand, she wasn't sure about.

The boy slowly moved his hands around her waist, pulling her towards him. Kako flinched slightly at the sudden contact of their bodies. It was unexpected, even to him. Slowly, Kanaye drew a breath and turned around, releasing Kako from his grip and forcing himself out of hers. He cleared his throat and continued walking down the endlessly white halls. "Hurry up. You're lagging behind."

Satisfied that her plans were working, Kako skipped beside Kanaye, a wide smile on her face. _Oh, I am good_.

-------------------------------------

"Say, Tomoki, why don't you come with us if you aren't busy for the rest of the day? Izumi and I were going to spy on Hideki and Rai for Kako and Shinya wanted to come along," Takuya told the younger boy, fastening his goggles back up on his head.

Tomoki shrugged. "Sure, why not? If you don't mind, that is. I could keep Shinya off your back if you want me to," he replied, standing up. _Not a burden any longer! Just watch-Tomoki Himi's going to get through this, world!_ That was all he had to do. Keep happy thoughts and he'd be flying to a new Never land.

At this, Takuya laughed, "It's a done deal, then! Man, I've been waiting forever for someone to say _that_!"

Tomoki suddenly blushed. Modesty flew through his veins. "Y-yeah, well, it's just...in return, you know," he mumbled awkwardly.

"Takuya, hurry up! And if Tomoki isn't coming, I'm going to have Shinya _sing_ on the way there!" Izumi called out.

The two boys exchanged glances before bursting out into laughter.

"So if I wasn't coming," Tomoki cackled, "you'd _really_ be done for."

Still laughing, Takuya affirmed, "Pretty much. That's why you're coming whether you like it or not!"

The laughter died down before the two burst into another wave. It was a pure, carefree feeling, one Tomoki loved. His heart felt lighter, his entire essence fresher. With his newfound wings, however young and small they were, Tomoki would fly to the highest point of the world.

_Just wait, Takuya_, he thought, beaming up at his idol as they walked to the restaurant. _I'll make all of you guys proud. All of you, and Yutaka. And then the world will see_...

All his life, Tomoki felt like a spoiled crybaby who always got what he wanted because he _was_ a crybaby. Yutaka had been right. Now, the feeling of being a simple inch of the ground was refreshing. He knew what the real world was like. And he loved that feeling.

..._I'm ready_.

-------------------------------------

As soon as the waiter left, Hideki jumped out of his seat and looked around. There was a tingling that disrupted his senses; something was wrong.

Rai, noticing his discomfort, shifted in her seat. "Sit," she whispered. "People are staring." When he slowly sat back down, she continued, "You feel it too? And not just because those four are watching us?"

"Yeah...Kako-"

Rai cut him off with a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. She'll be fine," the biology teacher told him. But she felt it too. Although Hideki was Kako's brother, Rai felt it a thousand times worse. "What do you say we just forget this, get Takuya and Junpei, and go after her?" she suddenly asked.

Frowning, Hideki replied in an accusing voice, "You told me not to be worried. Why are _you_ worried? She's my sister!"

In turn, Rai bit her lip. _Why did I agree to this? What ever happened to me? Next time, Rai, don't listen to Marise,_ she scolded herself. She hated being in this position. She hated having to explain. "Listen, Hideki, I'll explain it later," muttered Rai, looking away.

"No, _now_," he growled. His voice was rising dangerously. "I'm sick of it, Rai. You ignore all my calls, you don't talk to me unless Kako's grade is involved-all you can think of is your goddamn job. To hell with that! I want to talk _now_. No more putting this off. Do you love me or do you _pity_ me?" he snapped, standing up and slamming his hands down on the table.

She sat there, unmoving. It took several minutes before Rai slowly met Hideki's gaze with an ice-cold look of her own. "Pity," she answered softly.

Stunned, Hideki stepped back. "Wh-what?" he stuttered.

"I pity you," Rai repeated gently, standing up. "Good day, Hideki. I expect you'll be at our next meeting." Emitting a sigh, she walked out of the restaurant. However much she wanted to turn around, however much she wanted to run back to him, she couldn't. She was positive that, no matter what she did, Hideki's heart would remain fragmented, unable to ever be fully pieced back together.

Doing her best to control her emotions, Rai walked out of the door. She didn't make eye contact with her students. Instead, she shut her eyes and inclined her head in their direction. "Takuya, Izumi," Rai murmured. Her eye opened again, and she looked in front of her. "I'll see you four later. Shinya...and Tomoki, good luck," she whispered, continuing to walk again.

"W-wait! Ms. Kawai!" Takuya yelled, holding his hand out as if to reach for her shoulder. "You can't just _dump_ him! Slap him! Kick him, for goodness sakes! Don't just leave him there!" he pleaded.

Rai stopped in her tracks and hung her head. "It...it hurts less, when you finish a relationship like that. It makes it easier to remember the person. Takuya, if I do that, he'll recover quicker than Lucemon being attacked by an Agumon. Hideki is persistent. It takes _this_ to get a message into his head. I..." Suddenly trailing off, Rai shut her eyes. "I'll see you later," she repeated firmly, breaking into a run.

Before Takuya could run after her, Izumi grabbed her boyfriend's arm. "No," she whispered. "It's enough heartbreak for them already."

"Izumi, they're making a mistake," Takuya cried desperately, trying to force back the tears that began to sting his eyes. A choked sob broke through as he weakly told her, "You know...what he said."

The girl drew a breath. _If he isn't going to be the sensible one, I guess I have to,_ Izumi reasoned, raising her hand and bringing it down on Takuya's cheek. "Pull yourself together. I know what he says, but do you know what she feels? Do something useful and go talk to Hideki instead!" she snapped angrily.

A shadow hovered behind her. Izumi whirled around, surprised at the calm face of Hideki. He quietly placed a hand on her shoulder and shook his head. "Nothing will change her mind. You kids are way too young for this. If you're going to do anything useful, try locating Kako. I have a feeling that wherever she is, Kanaye is too," he whispered in a hoarse voice.

"Sheez, adult romance," Shinya muttered in disgust when Hideki walked off. Snorting, the young boy turned to Tomoki. "_So_ dramatic. So Tomoki, I never asked-hey, why are you crying?"

Tomoki, who had tears streaming down his cheek and hands clenched by his sides suddenly found himself yelling, "Why did you have to ruin the moment? God, I feel stupid now..." Sniffing, he wiped his eyes and glanced at Takuya and Izumi. Both gazed at their feet quietly. "H-hey, Shinya, why don't we go...somewhere else. I think they need time alone," Tomoki whispered to the younger boy.

Shinya nodded, and the two quietly walked away, occasionally throwing glances behind their backs, Tomoki in hopes that they would follow and Shinya in hopes they would kiss so he could catch them on camera.

-------------------------------------

Cold-blooded murder would have been less painful. Walking down the hall she was in, Kako wondered just how white the place could get.

_Obviously, no taste in color_, she decided, shivering and edging closer to him absentmindedly. What she had seen before was getting to her, but the effect produced was what she wanted. Kanaye didn't move, but instead seemed to be pulling her towards him. _God, if Kouichi was here, what I would do. But he's not here, and I'm weak,_ she told herself.

All she could do was buy time.

"So, where's Ai?" she asked in an innocent voice, wondering what her next move should be. Haste wasn't the best theme for the moment. Wanting to scream, she pressed closer to him, suddenly feeling a chill overcome her. Kako's eyes widened. She looked up at Kanaye fearfully, trying to pull away. "U-uh, K-Kanaye," she whispered, "it's...cold. Do you guys have the AC on or something?"

Kanaye chuckled, "No. It's a waste of money."

Trembling, Kako pulled closer to him. It wasn't that she wanted to. If anything, she wanted to push him away. But the sudden rush of ice through her veins resulted in the need to be warmed. The closest source of warmth just happened to be Kanaye, much to her disgust. He was enjoying every second of it. It was as if he planned for this all to happen. Deciding it was better to remain cold, Kako pushed him away and kept a small smile. "So, why is it so white? You seem more of a red or blue to me," she commented, biting the inside of her cheek to keep her teeth from chattering.

Returning the smile with a hint of a devious plan, Kanaye pulled her back towards him. "White is reassuring. We'll take this room."

"Wh-what?" Kako tried to keep calm, blinking at Kanaye in an innocently confused manner.

Kanaye's smirk widened. "Oh, you know..." He leaned towards her. "I just wanted to...talk to you," whispered the boy, leaning towards her.

_GET AWAY! Oh, great, Kako,_ her mind screamed, _he's going to _kiss_ you! Disgusting! Dodge!_ Kako found herself immobilized. _Damn...sorry, Kouichi_, she thought, shutting her eyes as Kanaye pushed her against the wall.

Her reflexes acted instead. A split second later, her foot stuck out, Kanaye two feet away from her shoe. _Oh...hell, there goes the wonderful act_, she thought miserably, reddening considerably. "Where's a door when you need one?" she muttered, spinning around and racing down the hall. She could hear Kanaye's footsteps right behind her. _And whenever you need to run, you tend to run faster than you do in PE. NO! GOD, WHERE'S THE DOOR?_ Running out of breath, she stopped and whirled around, glaring at Kanaye.

Kanaye paused before bursting out into laughter, "Do you really intend to _fight_ me, Kako? I thought you had more sense than that!"

"Oh shut up! I could beat you ten times over!" Kako spat. _With words, anyway_.

The amused look on his face quickly faded. "I told you to cooperate so things would be smooth," the boy hissed, grabbing her arm. "I'm not sure your beloved Kouichi would want to see you hurt...or in a very...interesting situation."

Eyes wide, Kako screamed, "YOU'RE ALL PERVERTS!" Swiftly, she released her arm and stepped back. "I'll _go_ nicely if you don't say _anything_ perverted! In fact, don't talk to me unless you _need_ to! And don't touch me, either," she added.

"Deal..." Smirking, Kanaye held a hand out in front of him. "After you, Kako," he said, bowing slightly in a mocking manner.

Kako stormed ahead, determined not to be beaten.

-------------------------------------

"What's this place?" Kako snapped, staring around at the blank room.

White, white, white. She was beginning to hate the color.

"Nothing," he replied, shutting the door and locking it.

_Oh, great. Where's Kouichi when you need him?_ Her mind answered the question angrily, _Hiding secrets, that's what. It's his fault you're here._ There was a certain truth to that, one Kako wished didn't exist. Feeling that the quiet was getting to her, Kako snapped, "Don't you have any rooms that _aren't_ in white?" Mentally, she noted there was no furniture in the room.

"No."

"Any rooms with _furniture_?" she tried, slowly getting exasperated.

His answer was the same. "No." Kanaye turned to the lone window opposite the door and walked over to it, sighing.

"What do you want?" Kako suddenly snapped. "We aren't doing anything. You might as well let me go!" It irritated her to do absolutely nothing.

Kanaye turned to her, smiling smugly. He must have had _some_ plan, she guessed, because he wasn't glaring at her. "We will be doing _something_ soon. You'll just have to be...patient." His eyes narrowed in on her as he asked, "Unless you have something in mind?"

_Beating you up!_ Kako rolled her eyes and walked up to the window, trying to ignore his presence. The sun was slowly sinking behind the clouds, casting a gray touch to the already gloomy looking area. There were certain areas where sunlight would suddenly peek out, but all traces of light were quickly subdued by an overcast sky. "Yeah, I have something in mind," Kako murmured slowly, arms folded on the windowsill. She leaned forward as if to capture a better view of the sky. "Watching the clouds."

Looking beaten, Kanaye fell silent and turned away. "Good. I'm sure that will keep you occupied by the time Fujitaka comes back. Oh, would you like to know why he's working for me?" Kanaye asked, chuckling darkly.

"Enlighten me," Kako replied. Her voice was filled with sarcasm. She could have cared less. All she wanted was for Kanaye to shut up and leave her alone.

But even when he shut up after talking, his words haunted her. "You remember that pathetic excuse of a boyfriend you have? Well, knowing I'm his greatest enemy, Fujitaka is helping me. And not only will I get rid of Kimura, but maybe have a little fun in the process. After all, time with Ai is quite...droll. But time with you would be ten times more interesting, I'm sure. I can't help it if I like to hear screaming," he commented, walking towards the door.

Wide-eyed, Kako screamed, "GET OUT OF HERE _RIGHT_ NOW! I _meant_ it, Kanaye!" Furiously, she tore off her shoe and threw it at him, managing to hit his knee. The shoe harmlessly bounced off and fell to the floor.

Kanaye burst out into laughter. "You see _that_," he commented, picking up the shoe and tossing it back to Kako, "was worth every moment of what you plan to do to me when you can."

"Oh, just _wait_. There's no way you'll survive when I get my hands on you," Kako growled, putting her shoe back on. "And I was serious! Get out of the room _right now_. I don't intend on sharing the same room with a goddamn pervert!"

A smirk played on Kanaye's lips. "Knowing your boyfriend's going to come gives you hope of successfully beating me up? He doesn't even know you're missing."

"It's not because of Kouichi!" Kako insisted loudly above the slam of the door. There was a click; she guessed he locked the door. Sighing, Kako sank down against the wall, staring at her hands. _How much time do I have to kill?_ Another sigh escaped her and she shut her eyes. The least she could do was catch up on some sleep.

-------------------------------------

Shinya frowned, a rare occurrence for him. "Tomoki, where are we going?" he asked the older boy, scratching the back of his head.

Also frowning, Tomoki replied, "No idea. I intended to get to the arcade but...this fog...I can't see _anything_." He desperately looked around, trying to find a way out of the fog. In his heart, Tomoki was frightened. It seemed impossible to get through. _But I have to be confident,_ he suddenly realized, _Takuya's depending on me!_

Acknowledging that fact, Tomoki turned to Shinya. "We can't split up. That would be lunacy," he murmured. Although he didn't want to, Tomoki drew a long breath and declared, "We'll just have to wait for it to clear up, then."

"Yeah, that's all great and all, but...what's that?" Shinya asked, pointing to the almost visible form ahead.

Tomoki squinted, not sure what to make of the shadow through the fog. "A person?" he wondered aloud. _It might be a sign. Or...or a building_, he hoped silently, absentmindedly grabbing Shinya's sleeve. "We have to be...careful."

Cackling, Shinya replied, "Oh, I'm all about being careful! Yep, you know me, always careful!" The carefree attitude dropped. Whimpering, Shinya grabbed a hold of Tomoki's arm. "Don't tell Takuya, _please_. I'm scared to bits," the young boy admitted in a whisper.

Tomoki wanted to laugh, but found he wasn't able to. He was drowning in fear, unable to speak. Opening his mouth, choking sounds escaped him. Closing his mouth resulted in the want to scream. With his jaw hanging, Tomoki stumbled back, falling on the ground and accidentally dragging Shinya down with him. "I...I think we should-"

The younger boy interrupted with a scream, "Running would be good!"

The figure walked forward, sneering at the two. A boy about Kouichi's age, Tomoki guessed, stood before them and whispered, "I suggest you just surrender the package. We wouldn't want there to be a little...accident."

There was a long silence.

As expected by Tomoki, Shinya was the first to break it with a smart comment. "Boy, are you new at this stuff?" the boy asked, snorting. "Even my brother could do better!"

And Tomoki couldn't help but smile. Shinya was almost in every way like his brother. Both could keep insanely calm in times of danger if they really wanted to. Similarly, both could be frightened to death.

Newfound courage flew through Tomoki. If Shinya could stand up to the likes of their opposition, he could, too. "He's got a point. That scare lasted about a second," Tomoki remarked, winking at Shinya.

The two exchanged grins.

Without warning, Shinya jumped up and charged towards the boy in front of him, arm poised for a punch. It took the same time for him to be flung back by some invisible force. Groaning as he fell to the floor, Shinya looked to Tomoki. "I think we should have just run," he mumbled weakly.

Angrily, Tomoki demanded, "Who are you?" His eyes were glued on the boy as he scooted towards Shinya, who lay only a foot away.

"Doesn't matter," the boy sneered, "you'll be coming with me, whether you like it or not."

There was an incoherent yell from Shinya. That was the last thing Tomoki remembered before complete black.

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A/N-

Not so great of a cliffy and short chapter. Sorry! I get less and less reviews, and though that's not the problem, I begin to wonder if everyone who wanted to actually read the last chapter. I don't want to post too fast, you know?

Another chapter won't be up for quite I while, I think. My mom will be gone for ten days (I told you, yes?) and in those ten days I have to work on homework, clean the house, go to TKD, clean the house, make sure my brother does his homework, clean the house, make sure my brother is ready for his TKD test, clean the house, etc. Pathetic excuse, I know, but if I try writing a chapter during that time, it'll come out forced. And I have a better excuse to couple that. It's from our school newspaper.

"Dear Readers,  
The original release date of _the Epic_, Vol. 41, Issue 5 was February 7, 2006. However, several misprints on the part of our publishing company have forced the release date to be moved back to today, February 8.  
We stand by our commitment to the quality of the newspaper, and we refuse to compromise its integrity simply in the interest of timeliness. We hope you enjoy this edition of the newspaper as much as we enjoyed creating it.  
Thank you for your patience.  
Sincerely,  
_The Epic Staff_"

And that was the note. I would hate to rush the story. This will affect both of us; I'll be losing readers, and you'll be irked from a lack of chapters. I love updating quickly, but now really isn't the time (contradicting chapter to put this A/N in) to rush. I do thank you greatly for your understanding and your tolerance of my excuses, which don't seem so valid. **YinYang HikariYami**, I pray you won't let loose your hyenas yet. I'll do my best to post if you do your best to patiently wait, but most of all enjoy and please review.

THANK YOU for the reviews and PMs and whatnot that I so very much enjoyed-

**Catwarrior, YinYang HikariYami, WithBrokenWings, GemmaniGirl  
**  
Review or PM or Flame.


	16. Trial By Light, Trial By Dark

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Trial By Light, Trial By Dark

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Kouichi felt a sickening sensation run through his stomach. He was tempted to ask Marise, but something told him otherwise. Instead, he calmly sipped his tea, eyes glued to the table.

"Is something wrong, Kouichi?"

The boy shook his head and gazed at the wall. There was a picture just above the table height on the wall. He had never noticed before; Kouichi guessed it was because of all the light colors used. It almost blended into the wall. "What's that...?" he asked, gazing at the picture with a sudden interest. No matter how close he leaned or how he squinted, Kouichi couldn't make out what it was.

A dazed smile overtook Marise. "One of Harumi's paintings. She was wonderful in everything. I'd constantly get sick, but get better the next day. I suppose without her, I'd still be sick," he commented with a small laugh. "She told me that I had to stop writing. I'd stay up day and night just to finish a chapter. 'You're killing yourself,' she told me, 'you aren't getting enough sleep.' She was probably right."

_Getting married seems pretty depressing_, Kouichi suddenly realized, gazing at the wall with a strange look on his face. _Maybe I should just stick to dat-what am I saying?_ Shaking his head in a pathetic attempt to clear his head of all thoughts, Kouichi turned back to Marise. Suddenly, without warning, he stood up and blurted, "I think I should leave now, sir. Um...I'll see you Monday." Turning around, Kouichi dashed out the door, not bothering to wait for an answer.

The feeling he had felt before grew greater than before. Kouichi guessed what could be wrong. But he knew what was wrong and all he could do was hope he was in time.

He stopped before a large house. It looked old and broken down, much like a run down farm. But as they said, 'don't judge a book by its cover,' Kouichi wasn't so sure if it was so modest. Warily, he walked towards the house, carefully taking one step at a time.

He had read of this somewhere. _Right_, the boy realized, suddenly stopping in his tracks. _In 'The Revenge of a Thief_.' _Kuwasagi does some hunting around to find out the real will. And then he-_

There was no time to complete the thought. As Kouichi expected when he took another step forward, the ground collapsed, swallowing him into pure white.

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"There has to be some way out," Kako muttered, desperately looking around. She was beyond bored now, and she was sure Kanaye had left. What irked her most was she had nothing to pick a lock with, and even if she did, she wouldn't be successful due to lack of skill.

Angrily, she threw her shoe at the door and slumped down against the wall again. She was in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do. Even watching Rai and Hideki would be interesting, despite the fact that she guessed it was more of a PG-13. Then again, anything with Hideki she would deem R. _Well I'd rather watch Bambi frolic through a field of daisies_, she thought, shutting her eyes.

Sleep had been a great idea until Kanaye started checking every five minutes. She was getting too quiet, he told her, so he had to check up on her. This resulted in Kako throwing another racket, managing to get no sleep at all.

There was a soft thud that startled Kako back to her senses. "What _is_ it?" she growled, getting up and storming to the door. Just as she picked up her shoe, a louder thud sounded. Kako whirled around just in time to see Kouichi fall to the floor. Shoe forgotten, she raced to his side and fell on her knees to get a better look at him.

Kouichi groaned, rolling over onto his back. The first thing other than white that he saw in the room was Kako's face. "Did I die? I didn't know all angels looked like Kako," he mumbled, shutting his eyes.

If he had them open, he would have seen Kako redden considerably. Her shoe was still in her hand. Swiftly, Kako brought her shoe down on Kouichi's stomach, causing him to yell in pain and roll onto his stomach, away from Kako. Kako sighed and snapped, "I'm not in the mood for stupid talk right now, Kouichi, so just digivolve and get us out of here, will you?" She rose to her feet, staring down at Kouichi. Her hands were placed on her hips and a look of discontent shadowed her face.

"Well I was serious," he replied, sitting up and rubbing his head. Kouichi picked up Kako's shoe and tossed it to her. "And Ma-I mean-" he started. _How do I explain that her dad took away my D-Tector?_ Scratching his head, Kouichi did his best to look calm as he lied, "Hideki took it." _Sorry, Hideki. You're the best scapegoat_, the boy thought, eyes sliding shut as Kako fell back onto her knees, then onto her back. He opened his eyes and looked around the room, taking in his surroundings. He had fallen directly down with only a bump or two. There was no evidence of a hole in the ceiling, and there was a window opposite the door.

"I'm doomed," Kako moaned, shutting her eyes. "Do you at _least_ have something I can kill myself with?"

Chuckling dryly, Kouichi responded sarcastically, "If you want a painful death by a wooden sword." He hadn't been serious, but when Kako sat up, staring at him, he wondered if she took him seriously. "Kako, _sarcasm_," he told her, edging away slightly.

"No, you say you have a sword?" she asked eagerly, crawling forward quickly until he was backed up against a wall. "Hurry up and give it to me!"

"My doctor recommends I don't give you anything sharp."

"Kouichi Kimura, if you don't, I'll tell _everyone_ where you hid your poems and pictures and everything from fourth grade!" she threatened. After a pause, Kako added, "I'll also ask Rai to give you a book of math problems to do in a day!"

Rolling his eyes, Kouichi shrugged. "You forget, I'm not the one who hates math to death. Isn't that you?" He placed both hands on her shoulders and pushed her back.

Desperate, Kako pleaded, "Kouichi, _please_? I'll do anything! _ANYTHING_, OKAY? Just give me the sword and I'll owe you a favor!" She pushed his arms away and moved closer.

"You owe Duskmon a favor still, right?" Kouichi asked absentmindedly. "Anything, huh?" Kako nodded. "How about..." A dozen thoughts raced through Kouichi's head. He could ask her for _anything_, and yet although he wanted it to be different, he found himself declaring, "You _have_ to go to Hawaii."

Kako hesitated, seeming to choke on the words that came out of her mouth. "Done," she rasped, turning away from him.

"Do you not want to go?"

"W-well...in truth? Going with Kouji is a bit weird..." Kako confessed, shivering slightly.

Kouichi cleared his throat. "About that. I...I think that we should think this through a bit." _This way, I can get her to _not_ think about the sword and still ask,_ he realized. He didn't want to give up the bokuto and he didn't want to know what Kako had planned.

"What?"

"Our relationship," Kouichi said, hastily edging against the wall in case Kako got angry. "Y-you see," he murmured, "I just think that...maybe...we can decide if we're going to do anything later? After Hawaii?"

Kako's eyes narrowed as she whirled to face him. "'_do_ anything?'" she repeated. "What do you mean, '_do_ anything?'"

"NOT LIKE THAT!" Kouichi blurted, reddening to a bright shade of red.

Kako flushed a slight shade of pink. "Y-you pervert...I DIDN'T MEAN IT LIKE THAT!" she screamed, angrily standing up and hovering over him. "Why is it that _all_ you boys think the same way? You're a bunch of perverted freaks!" Kako stormed to the other side of the room and sat down, glaring at him.

Exasperated, Kouichi let a hand fly to his forehead. "If boys are perverted, girls are just plain annoying," he muttered, mainly to himself.

Kako heard. Furiously, she retorted, "NOT TRUE! Besides, we're too cool to be annoying."

"Enough of that, okay! Where the heck are we, anyway?" Kouichi suddenly asked.

The long silence was filled with confusion. "...a room? That's white?" Kako offered, shrugging. "It doesn't matter. The first thing I do after I get out of here is beat u-"

She was interrupted halfway through. "-is ask Hideki if you can go to Hawaii," Kouichi corrected smoothly.

Folding her arms, Kako turned away, grumbling silently to herself. A crooked smile decorated Kouichi's face. "It's like Saito's books. I kind of wonder if he could see the future or something," he suddenly commented without warning. Noticing the strange look Kako sent his way, Kouichi allowed the smile to develop fully.

Without warning, Kako blushed and turned the other way, leaving Kouichi utterly confused. Before either of them could say another word, though, Tomoki and Shinya came crashing through the now opened door. Kouichi rose to his feet, barely stopping Tomoki as he stumbled forward. Shinya, he was unable to stop, and the young Kanbara fell to the floor a foot away from Kako's feet. Kako mercilessly kicked his arm before standing up as well and turning to the figure at the door.

"Wait till Naoko hears this, Fujita," she growled. I bet you _anything_ that she'll murder you." She started towards Fujitaka only to be held back by Kouichi and Tomoki.

To finish her job, Shinya ran forward, ready to punch. Once more, he was repelled by an invisible force and sent flying back. Fujitaka burst out laughing. "You can't touch me, don't you get it? I'm practically invincible. Honestly, Kouichi, I ought to thank you. How about a quick death? Would that do?"

"FUJITA I'M REALLY TELLING NAOKO!" Kako screamed.

"IT'S FUJITAKA! ONLY NAOKO CAN CALL ME FUJITAKA!" Fujitaka screamed angrily.

"Whatever," Kako muttered. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Shinya get up and start again. "No, Shinya. Just leave him. He's pretty much outnumbered, anyway," she commented. A small smile appeared on her face when Kouichi pulled her back further. "Relax." Kako gave him a reassuring smile before walking right past Fujitaka. "See, although you're...somewhat...invincible, you wouldn't dare hit a girl, would you?"

"The book," Tomoki whispered. "He has it." He turned to Kouichi with a pleading look. "Please, we _have_ to get it back! They're counting on me!"

Kouichi kept his eyes glued on Fujitaka. "So what do you say, then, Fujitaka," he murmured. "I break your little invincibility spell and you give us our book back." Calmly, he brought out the digivice. A second later, bokuto in hand, Kouichi assumed his stance.

At first, Fujitaka laughed. But when Kouichi pushed Tomoki out of the room and Shinya soon followed, he became serious. "Fine, and if I win, you all stay," he growled, glaring at Kouichi. "You won't get away with kissing Naoko."

Exasperated, Kouichi yelled, "It wasn't _my_ fault!" He charged towards Fujitaka, bokuto raised.

Fujitaka snorted as Kouichi was flung back. "I know she's irresistible, but get your own girl!" he yelled.

The wooden blade nearly fell out of Kouichi's hand. Something wasn't right. He wasn't concentrating. Drawing a breath, he stood up. There was no invincibility anything on Fujitaka. It was merely his will to be an impenetrable force, magnified by the shadow system, Kouichi guessed. _His digimon must be powerful, then_, Kouichi realized, calmly gazing at the boy in front of him. _What combo would Hideki use? Vortex...guard! Blade beam style-what am I thinking? I feel like Hideki_. Disgusted, Kouichi jumped back from his parrying and pointed the blade at Fujitaka.

"I'm amazed you made it through," Fujitaka sneered. "Just wait until the boss gets here." He dodged easily as Kouichi slid forward.

Kouichi frowned. "Boss?" he asked in a confused voice. "Oh, you meant the oh-so-lowly Kanaye." Smirking, he kicked Fujitaka back, edging back himself from the impact. "So, where exactly are we, Fujitaka? Care to spill?" He swiftly moved forward, dodging a punch and managing to swipe at Fujitaka's arm.

Without warning, Kouichi was thrown back. Fujitaka stood there, as clueless as Kouichi. Scrambling to his feet, Kouichi's gaze went towards Kako and the others. "K-Kanaye!" he snapped furiously. "Let her _go_."

Kanaye was behind Kako, arms wrapped around her waist. Shinya and Tomoki were guarded by two upper classmen, Kouichi guessed. Smirking, Kanaye asked, "So would you drop out if something happened to her? You know, I think you're right-Kako _is_ better than Ai."

Kouichi opened his mouth to say something, but quickly closed it and swallowed back a laugh. It took every ounce of self-control not to smile. He nearly choked.

Casually, Kanaye rested his chin on Kako's shoulder. The discontent on her face was obvious. "Kouichi, you can take your time," she growled, eyes narrowing on Kouichi.

In return, Kouichi just waved (the smile was making its way through), bringing out the digivice again. The wooden sword disappeared and he pocketed the device, slipping his hands into his pockets. _One minute_.

Kanaye chuckled and turned Kako around. "You don't seem to mind," he commented. "So if I kissed her-"

"By all means, go ahead," Kouichi replied. He tried so hard to maintain the serious look on his face. There was the tinge of amusement still twinkling in his eyes. "Put all the passion into it, Kanaye."

Regarding him with an eyebrow raised, Kanaye shrugged. He stood up straight and gazed Kouichi in the eye, still unable to understand the boy's strange cooperation. He shrugged and bent down towards Kako, murmuring, "Your loss."

Kako's eyes widened for two reasons. One, for the same reason as Kouichi. The second reason was quite obvious; Kanaye was dangerously close to her. _Oh, if he goes through with this-_

Halfway through her thought, Kanaye was pulled back by a very angry looking Ai. Kako pushed herself out of his arms, staggering back and falling into Kouichi. They both fell to the ground and waited breathlessly for Ai's reaction.

"So," Ai muttered. "_She's_ better than _me?_" the girl asked venomously.

Kanaye had turned pale by now, cringing at the realization that Ai had listened to a great deal of what he had said. Stiffly, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a hug. "N-no, Ai...uh, you know...I'd...never...mean that," he stuttered, glaring at Kouichi.

In return, Kouichi gave him a thumbs up sign, turning to Fujitaka and holding his hand out. "I believe you owe us something."

"I don't have it," Fujitaka growled, "and I don't owe you anything."

"Oh just _take_ it!" Ai growled. A book flew out of her hand and landed in front of Tomoki's face. Quickly, before anyone else could do anything, Tomoki picked the book up and held it to his chest, looking shaken. Kouichi frowned, noticing the familiar cover of the book. Angrily, Ai continued, "And here I was coming to ask what you wanted for dinner! I didn't expect to find you trying to kiss some other girl! I hate you, Kanaye! You...I _hate_ you!" An angry shriek escaped the girl as Kanaye unsuccessfully tried to mollify her, chasing after her as she ran down the hall.

Kako turned around to face Kouichi. "We...owe her one, huh?" she murmured, blushing slightly.

Kouichi cleared his throat. He looked away and asked, "Could you...get off of me?" Squeaking, Kako jumped up. He smiled slightly. "Yeah," he murmured, "We _do_ owe her, I guess. Anyway, later, Fujitaka. We won't tell Naoko." Standing up, Kouichi made for the door.

Angrily, Fujitaka called out, "We didn't finish our fight!"

"We'll continue later. It was kind of fun. I think I have the hang of it," Kouichi replied, raising a hand and turning his head slightly. "See you Monday." His hand dropped to his side, only rising to push away Kanaye's hired hands.

Successful with getting rid of the so-called guards without violence, Kouichi wondered exactly how they would get out.

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There was silence.

"Hello?"

Nothing.

"You know, Kouichi, I don't think we're getting anywhere," Kako commented, shivering and edging towards his side.

Sighing, Kouichi replied, "It could be because every time we've had you choose a direction to go, which has been every time, you've chosen right, and we've ended up going in a circle." He winced inwardly as Kako grabbed his arm.

Tomoki, who was ten times happier than he was originally, held onto the book tightly. There was a small smile on his face, one of relief. "Well, at least we have the book back," he whispered, eyes slipping shut.

"It won't do us much good if we get lost in here," Kouichi replied. "What is that, anyway?"

In response, Tomoki gave him a small smile.

Shrugging, Shinya declared, "But I'm bored! So either Kouichi gets us out or someone suffers!"

There was a snort. The boys turned to Kako, who had folded her arms and was currently glaring at Shinya. "That _someone_ can be yourself, thank you. I think there's an unfair advantage, here. H-hey...STAY AWAY!" she suddenly yelled, racing behind Kouichi as Shinya held a finger out menacingly. "Pick on a boy!"

Hiding a smile, Kouichi winked at Shinya before facing Kako. "Right...she's outnumbered. And we wouldn't want there to be an unfair advantage like that," he commented.

"Exactly! I knew you'd understand, Kouichi!" Kako agreed with an affirmative nod.

Kouichi stepped closer, hands moving towards Kako's waist. Clearing his throat, he continued, "And...um, it wouldn't be very _courteous_ either." He nodded towards Tomoki who moved to the side opposite Kako.

At this point, the girl had shut her eyes and continued to nod.

Shinya situated himself, finger positioned. Tomoki followed his example. Kouichi, unable to hide his grin, positioned both fingers on either side of Kako's waist before he commented, "And that's all the more reason why we ought to." As he said this, he poked her.

Kako let out a loud squeal before kicking her leg out and managing to hit both Shinya and Kouichi. Tomoki, who had smartly slid away after poking her, remained in tact. "What's your problem?" Kako screamed, arms stiffly sticking to her sides in an effort to protect them. "Personal bubble, _please_!"

Cringing, Kouichi stood up and rubbed his shoulder. He murmured in a weak voice, "I'll definitely remember that." Before he could move again, Kako poked his shoulder. Kouichi froze. "Y-You just _shocked_ me!" he screamed, furiously rubbing his shoulder.

A mischievous smile formed on Kako's lips. Smiling, she stepped forward, continuously poking him. The first few had no effect on Kouichi, but very soon, every other poke had him yelping and grasping his shoulder.

"Where'd Kako get her super poking static shock powers?" asked Shinya, awed. "I want them!"

"Then _take_ them," Kako muttered, poking Shinya's shoulder. "I'm getting kind of bored of them. I feel half the shocks Kouichi does, anyway."

Shinya let out a half scream and jumped back. "NO MORE!"

"Hey, _you_ wanted them!"

The young boy's eyes widened as he saw Kako approach him with a finger held out. "N-no!" he begged, "it was Kouichi's idea!"

"WHAT?" Kouichi regarded Shinya with a look of pure fury. "Did _I_ start poking her first? NO, you scared her back and _then_ we collaborated!"

Kako turned to Kouichi and he jumped away. "AHA! So you all_ are_ against me!" she accused, pointing her finger at Kouichi.

Kouichi held up his hands and replied, "Yeah, yeah, just...get that thing away."

"IT'S A FINGER!"

"That shocks people!"

"You, anyway!"

Tomoki watched as Kako, Kouichi and Shinya engaged in a small scuffle, their only attacking tool being their index finger. It was somewhat amusing; for some reason they'd all get shocked. It was even more amusing when Shinya and Kako teamed up against Kouichi, until the three suddenly turned towards him.

Nervously, Tomoki backed against the wall, clutching the book tightly against his chest. "Wh-what are you-NO!" he screamed before they could even poke him. Frightened with the anticipation, Tomoki dropped to his knees and squeezed his eyes shut.

Rolling his eyes, Kouichi held out a hand to Tomoki. A sigh escaped him and he murmured, "Now that we're done with that, we can find the way out of here." Kouichi swiftly pulled Tomoki to his feet, realizing the boy didn't see his hand.

"Okay, killjoy," Kako muttered. "I mean, honestly. Couldn't you all be like Tomoki? He hasn't poked _anyone_!"

Kouichi and Shinya exchanged glances. "But he poked first, didn't he?" Shinya asked in a low whisper. Kouichi just shrugged, and the four continued down the corridor until they came to another split.

"We're going _left_," Kouichi growled, stepping to his left.

But Kako grabbed his arm. "No way! Left is the opposite of right!" she declared.

There was silence. Then, Kouichi asked, "What's your point?"

"Well, wrong is _also_ the opposite of right! So left is wrong. Thus, we must go right!"

"Can't live without making mistakes," Kouichi replied with a shrug. "So we'll go left."

"Right!"

"I know I'm right."

"No! I mean we have to-oh I give _up_!" Kako screamed. "I'm going right! Who's coming with me?" She turned around, eyes flashing. To her shock, the other two were following Kouichi.

"Hey, did you two hear anything?" Kouichi asked Tomoki and Shinya as the two followed closely behind him.

Shinya shook his head. "Maybe there's a draft?" he suggested.

Tomoki laughed, "If there is, we can follow it and find the exit."

At this point, Kouichi snorted, "But it's coming from behind us. Hey, Kako, are you coming or what?" He turned around and stopped, waiting for Kako to come.

She never did. Instead, Kako stormed to the right, and, Kouichi guessed, continued to do so. Eventually, she ended up at the same place she had been five minutes ago. That didn't annoy her so much as the smug face on Kouichi's face. Finally, she admitted her defeat in a hiss: "Alright, let's just _get out_."

Triumphantly, Kouichi turned back towards the path and continued to walk, slowing down when he realized Kako was lagging behind. They stayed like that for a while, seemingly going nowhere. Eventually, the quartet ended up in a dead end. At this point, it was Kako who had a smug look on her face. Smirking, she sneered, "_Told_ you we should have gone right."

Kouichi remained indifferent, much to her annoyance. Staring at the blank white wall in front of him, he returned, "It's no problem. We'll head back, take the right turn, then turn left the next chance we get."

"If you ever _get_ a chance," came an annoyed growl.

Kako froze. "But Ai took care of you!" she screamed.

A lopsided grin formed on Kouichi's face as he asked, "Did you manage to calm her down after flirting with her for ten minutes?" He turned around to Kanaye, ready to counter verbally or with his sword; a hand was in his pocket, ready to pull out the digivice when needed.

Angrily, Kanaye snapped, "At least we don't argue about stupid things like picking which direction to go in!" His eyes were narrowed in a nasty glare, pointed towards Kouichi. There was a negative aura surrounding him, one that Kouichi realized made his next move incredibly unpredictable. Kanaye was in a nasty mood-whatever counter Kouichi planned would have to be executed swiftly and effectively. There was no time for hesitation.

_I need time_, he realized, stepping back. "We would have been saved the stupid argument if you had just told us where the exit is," countered the boy, slowly dragging his hand out of his pocket.

Kanaye suddenly burst out into laughter. It continued, loud, daunting, floating through the air. Kako shivered, unconsciously edging towards Kouichi. Mentally, Kouichi scowled at the action. _Oh, _now_ I'm okay to stand by_, he thought grumpily.

The laughter eventually subsided. But even then, Kanaye occasionally chuckled. When at last he had collected himself, the boy snapped, "_Tell_ you where the exit is? That would be ridiculous." There was a pause before he asked curiously, "How about a little game?"

Kouichi shrugged, but Kako shouted, "NO!" and tightened her grip on Kouichi. Astounded by her actions, the boy turned to her in askance. There was no reply, but a small shiver was shown.

Continuing as if Kako had never interrupted, the other boy raised a hand, freeing it from the restrictions of his sleeve. "One quick game is all it will take. I'll give you five minutes to get out of the enclosed space. If you fail, you hand over the book and that little device you intend to fight me with. If you win, you'll be provided with a way out," Kanaye informed them. A thick wall slid between him and the other four. Although obscured from view, Kanaye's voice pierced through. "I'll give you five minutes, starting..._now_."

Once the announcement was made, all was quiet.

"Hurry," Kouichi urged, beginning to tap on areas of the wall. "Shinya, you cover that side. Kako, that one...Tomoki-Tomoki! Now isn't the time for this! Be strong, _please_," the oldest boy begged, desperately running a hand over the wall.

Tomoki sat on the floor, shaken. The book was held tightly in his arms, and his eyes were nothing more than vacant orbs. He had agreed to protect the book, it was true, but he had never thought things would get so dangerous. It was one book-what would Kanaye want with it? Nothing it held would be of interest to him. _Maybe...it's because it would help us and he doesn't want it to,_ Tomoki realized, standing up. The vacant expression still on his face, he walked to the wall Kouichi had instructed him to cover.

Something was there, something important. Upon closer inspection of the wall, Tomoki realized what it was. Such an important fact, so easily overlooked...

He brought up his hand, eyes glazed over. It brushed over the carve in the wall. For a moment, everything shone is a brilliant light. Tomoki wanted to cover his eyes, but for some reason, his hand wouldn't budge. It was stuck onto the wall, no matter how he pulled or yanked. The light grew brighter-he could have sworn he heard several yells, but couldn't be sure. It seemed to affect his ears, too. Everything around him swarmed in heat.

The next thing Tomoki knew, he was cooled down considerably. His eyes were shut, and he imagined himself in a swimming pool on a hot summer's day.

"Tomoki. Tomoki, wake up!"

Kouichi's voice snapped him out of his senses. Tomoki opened his eyes and winced. Everything looked dark compared to the light he had seen before. They were outside again, in a garden, he presumed. Things suddenly grew chilly. Hunching up and rubbing his arms, Tomoki's teeth chattered as he asked, "Why is it...s-so...cold?"

"Tomoki..."

"Yeah?" Tomoki frowned, gazing up at Kouichi. Something was wrong.

Grinning, Shinya said, "Well, on the bright side, we've got another digimon on the team!"

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A/N-

I've ranted enough. All I'll say is I apparently haven't been getting enough sleep, and it's weird-I want to sleep in, but I can't.

THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS (this chapter is totally dedicated to you)-

**GemmaniGirl, Catwarrior, WithBrokenWings**

_Please_ review, or I won't update for a week, because that's the only way I can be sure that everyone who wanted to read it has _read_ it. Also, my writing is…well, it seems to be…deproving, or something. I don't know, but it lacks something, and I'm not sure what. So constructive criticism would help. Because I know a lot of you all have plenty to say. Flames are good, too, so long as there's a point in it.

**Review or PM or Flame**.


	17. Looking For Hope

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Looking For Hope

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"Are you happy?"

"Very."

"You owe me."

"Yes, well, if you hadn't, I could have just destroyed you, anyway."

"I didn't do it because of that fact."

"I know."

"Your jabber is boring me, old man."

There was an odd silence that befell them both.

"Thank you," Marise finally murmured. "Yes, a thank you is in order here."

The boy was quiet. Turning so his back faced the older man, he muttered, "I don't accept it. You're far from welcome."

The grim smile on Marise's lips disappeared. His face was straight as another person came into the room. "Rai," he acknowledged softly.

The boy turned around. "_You_," he sneered at Rai.

She inclined her head in his direction. "Devimon."

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm as human as you at the moment," he growled.

Rai chose to ignore his comment. Instead, turning to Marise, she muttered, "I'll be seeing him out the door and then we'll be having a long talk." As soon as Marise affirmed this, Rai walked towards Devimon's human form, giving it a small push. "Move it, you damn devil," she snapped, now walking ahead of him.

_This is the treatment I get? Why did I even help them? Oh, of course. Because stupid Lucemon is who knows where, formulating his next plan, all because he can't find a new host._ He followed Rai quietly, holding himself up in a dignified manner. To her last comment, he remarked, "I never knew angels cursed."

A chuckle escaped Rai. "I never knew devils had manners," she countered.

"You'd be amazed."

"Frankly, I'm not," Rai replied in a dry voice.

For the longest while, as they walked down the corridor, there was silence. _Perhaps_, thought Rai, _because he is here._ There were many questions that even she could not answer, and this-why he was helping them-she could not. _But maybe he can?_

"Go ahead, ask."

Startled, Rai stopped and looked over her shoulder. The boy had stopped as well. "Are you reading my mind?" she demanded, a growing anger overcoming her.

He quickly shook his head and hastily replied in his defense, "It's a guess. Fine, how about this: You ask one question, I'll answer, I ask a question and you answer. Deal?"

She accepted without hesitation. "Fine. Why are you helping us?"

There was a snort. He laughed, "You think we want to work for an idiot? I'm amazed he hasn't blown our cover. But Kimura seems to have figured it out, although he thinks he's wrong. My turn. Do you love him?"

"W-who?" Rai stuttered, mentally slapping herself. That hesitation completely gave her away.

Grinning, the boy replied, "You know who I'm talking about? You do, don't you?" The grin faded, replaced by a serious look.

It was then that Rai realized they had stopped walking. Swiftly turning on her heel, she continued down the hall. "Yes," she whispered softly. "I guess I do."

Chuckling as he followed her, he shook his head. "Ophanimon, you're letting the complexity of human life get to you," commented the boy.

This caused a smile to play on her lips. "Me? What about you and that old hag?"

He stiffened immediately, stopping where he was. "Sh-she completely...gave me away today. I was doing just fine-I was almost ready to fight Kimura. And then...she came." He shivered at the memory.

Rai laughed, leaning against the wall. "Kanaye," she choked, "even _you_ can't escape the complexity of human life."

"Quiet!" barked Kanaye, reddening. "It isn't my fault if it's _true_, too!"

The amusement quickly faded. Now glaring at him, Rai demanded, "Were you talking about Kako?" She pushed off the wall and walked towards Kanaye, furious.

His smirk reappeared. "Ah, come now, Ophanimon. You know I can't resist a good challenge," Kanaye replied, staring her straight in the eye.

"Find it _elsewhere_," growled Rai before turning around. "She won't come to you anyway, you know." Her voice was soft, a bare whisper. Kanaye had to stop breathing to hear as Rai continued, "She sees more in him than anyone else. I don't know if it's an actual liking or a mere result. All I know is..."

"He has hope," Kanaye muttered in quiet disgust.

Rai nodded as they approached the door. "Wings of hope...can be found in the strangest of places. Perhaps, in a dream, everything will be revealed in its true light. Now, Devimon, I wish you the best of luck. Good day and good riddance," said Rai, ushering Kanaye out the door before walking back to Marise's room and taking a seat.

Marise's eyes were shut, his breathing shallow. Immediately, Rai recognized what was happening. Her eyes slipped shut and she drew a breath. "Harumi, please...we need a host soon..."

-------------------------------------

Izumi and Takuya sat in Izumi's room, trying to come up with a proper plan. Tomoki and Shinya had walked off, and they had decided that the two could take care of themselves. In the meantime, Takuya proposed that they patch things up between Rai and Hideki.

"I'm telling you, Takuya," Izumi snapped, "we can't interfere! This is between them!"

But Takuya was insistent. "I don't _care_," he returned.

Izumi sighed, "You realize that things could go horribly wrong and they'll probably end up hating each other more?" She wanted the two to get back together as much as Takuya did, but she knew Rai had her reasons and respected them. For the moment, all she could do is make Takuya aware of the consequences. She knew very well that he would get his way in the end.

To her relief, he nodded solemnly. "I know," Takuya whispered, "but it's worth the try."

"First, though, we need to think this through. I think...we ought to do a little research. How about this-you go with Hideki, make sure he doesn't get drunk. If he does, get anything, and I mean _any_ info you can from him. I'll take care of Rai. I know _exactly_ where to look."

"So we split up from here?"

"Yeah."

"Just one thing." Izumi turned to Takuya, finding a gaze of burning determination obvious on his face. "Exactly _what_ information am I supposed to get from him?"

With all her strength, Izumi fought back the strong urge to slap Takuya then and there. Instead, she dragged him to the front of her house and shoved him out the door. "Any more secrets about Rai, the Digital World, or anything that you can make sense of! Now get going!" she exclaimed, pushing him and then slamming the door shut.

After all, she had her own research to do.

-------------------------------------

Tomoki shivered, and it wasn't because he was cold. No, that was impossible. He was, after all, Kumamon.

Suppressing a sigh, Kouichi turned to him, a worried look on the older boy's face. "Hey, Tomoki, how did you just up and digivolve?" he asked in a murmur.

He shrugged. "I don't know. It just...happened after that light. I couldn't _not_ digivolve and...and Kumamon was just there beside me all of the sudden. So...I had to," he finished lamely He couldn't explain it. It seemed as if he had no choice in the matter-it was just natural.

Kouichi frowned. Tomoki's case was strange. All the others had seemingly randomly gotten their spirits and D-Tectors, and the spirits had always come first. But Tomoki had gotten the same things the other way around.

A second later, Tomoki de-digivolved. His D-Tector was in one hand, while a now obvious book was in the other.

"Bokomon's book," whispered Kouichi. "But how-"

"I don't know!" Tomoki cried. "I don't! Just...don't tell the others, please?" He was desperate. He had to prove himself. Afraid Kouichi wouldn't understand, Tomoki allowed the items in his hands to fall as he clenched his fists and stared at the ground. Tears streamed down his face.

Startled, Kouichi walked up to the younger boy and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, don't cry. You're doing great, Tomoki." He offered a smile and continued, "And just look. Kumamon's proud to be your partner. There's a reason _you_ got your D-Tector first, and it's a good one, too. Don't cry. We're pretty much nothing with you." There was a solemn look on Kouichi's face.

Finding no lie, Tomoki broke into a smile as well. "Y-you think I'm that much help?" he asked in a bare whisper.

Kouichi grinned and replied, "I know."

The two broke out in laughter. Seconds later, Tomoki realized that Kako and Shinya were there. His face heated up as he met their eyes. "Uh...s-so where are we?"

Only Shinya was staring at Tomoki. Kako's eyes were more fixed at their surroundings. She shivered and stepped back. Quietly, Kako murmured, "We're...in _this_ place...?"

"What place?" Shinya suddenly asked with great interest.

"_Shinya_? Tomoki...wait-_you two!_ WHAT ARE YOU FOUR DOING HERE?" Kouji screamed in horror.

Kouichi whirled around to come face to face with his twin. Immediately, he brought his hands up in defense. "I swear I didn't do it-what am I saying?" he blurted, shaking his head. Kouichi cleared his throat and clarified, "Escape route lead to here. Wherever here is."

"My backyard?" the younger twin supplied.

"Right," Kouichi replied in haste. "That."

Kouji narrowed his eyes on the four. "What have you been doing, anyway? Stalking Kanaye?" he guessed. To his surprise, they all nodded. "Is that B-"

"No," Kouichi interrupted. "You know what? I'm hungry. Does Dad have any food in the fridge that isn't spoiled?" he asked, walking over to Kouji and placing an arm on his brother's shoulder as they walked back towards the house. Hiding a smile, the other three followed.

-------------------------------------

"Amazing..." Kouichi murmured in awe. "Most of it's almost expired. I thought Dad was responsible..." Shrugging, he began sorting through the fridge, taking almost everything out.

"So," Kako murmured, arms folded on the kitchen table, "what've you been up to, Kouji?"

Kouji looked at the ceiling as if trying to hide his face from everyone. "Uh, well I was checking on the garden," he lied. "And...cleaning my room."

At this point, Shinya began to cough. "Lie alert," the boy snorted. Tomoki smiled.

"If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine," Tomoki murmured, staring appreciatively at the brown paper bag wrapping that covered the book.

For a while, Kouji was silent. There was an occasional mutter of "Expired," from Kouichi, who was looking for some food to cook. All the time in the Digital World, not even _once_ had he seen Tomoki as sure and brave as he did now. There was always the slightest hint of fear in the younger boy's eyes. But now, it was as if he had become a completely different person. The silence that soon began to emanate from everyone else suddenly alerted Kouji. He faced his brother, who was staring blankly at a bag of carrots. Tentatively, Kouji called out, "Kouichi?"

With the same blank eyes, Kouichi met his brother's gaze. "Mmm...huh?" he mumbled incoherently, shaking his head. Now focused, Kouichi returned to the fridge. There was a strange thought that occurred, one that he couldn't shake away. But realizing it wasn't the best time, all Kouichi could do was wait.

Kako, noticing the uneasy air, asked, "Anyone know what happened to the rest?" She was curious, at the least. Something told her that Rai and Hideki _had_ actually gone out. Even though Rai continuously pushed him away, she did always give Hideki a chance.

Shinya began coughing again, and Tomoki fell silent. Noticing their reaction, Kako turned to them. "Yes?" she asked, eyes boring into Tomoki's.

"Rai and Hideki-they...had a fight," the boy whispered in a barely audible voice. He continued, almost even quieter than before, "It started when Shinya, Takuya, Izumi and I came. And then...then Rai left. And Hideki soon after. I don't know about anyone else, though."

"Junpei ought to spend more time with us," Kouji realized, shaking his head. Smirking, he added, "I bet he's doing his homework." The bandana boy chuckled and Shinya made a face.

Kouichi cleared his throat, standing up straight. There was a tired look on his face. "I've deduced," he mumbled slowly, "that we have absolutely _nothing_ edible in the fridge. Even the milk is outdated. And the ice cream, too." Taking a small portion of the pile of food on the kitchen counter, he looked around for the trashcan.

The younger twin walked over and opened a cupboard. "Not my fault," he muttered.

"A fight," Kako repeated in a whisper to herself several times. It didn't seem normal. Well, it did, but for some reason, it made no sense. She shook her head.

Kouichi noticed this and asked, "Something wrong?" Quickly, he disposed of the food before washing his hands and taking a seat in the chair beside her. The answer was obvious; he had been paying attention to what Tomoki had said.

She looked at him, a mix of worry and a fight to keep calm on her face. "Normally when they fight, it's just for a day. The next day, Rai apologizes, or Hideki gives a dramatic apology and tries to-well, that isn't the point. But this fight...I don't know. It feels more serious, and I'm worried," Kako sighed.

It was at that moment that Kouichi remembered the diary. His hand brushed over it for a second. He was tempted to give it to her then and there, but knowing full well that it would lead to the curiosity of Kouji, Tomoki, and especially Shinya, he decided against it. Instead, he gave her a small smile and reassured her with a quick, "I'm sure they'll be fine." It was a lie. He had no idea how Rai and Hideki worked, and he wasn't very sure he wanted to.

In return, Kako just smiled. It was obviously forced, but none of the boys said anything on the manner. Shinya stood up. "Well, if everyone's done talking, can we go eat now? I feel like I haven't eaten all week!" the boy exclaimed, a hand flying to his stomach and patting it.

"A true Kanbara." Kouji rolled his eyes.

Defensively, Shinya muttered, "Well if you had a near death experience, wouldn't _you_ be hungry?"

The bandana boy grinned. "So long as I had the necessities of life, I'd be good. And you know what they are. Games..."

"Games," Shinya muttered with a nod.

With a grin, Tomoki concluded, "And games!"

"Give me a break! What are games without food?" Kouichi argued, rolling his eyes.

The three boys burst out into laughter. "No, no...they have a point," Kako declared. "But my version would be games, food and-and...and something. No idea what," confessed the girl.

Seizing the time as an opportunity to thoroughly embarrass Kako and Kouichi, Kouji asked in an innocent voice, "What? Kouichi?"

Kouichi nearly choked and Kako shrieked. As she stood up, Kouji's face fell. _Not good_, he realized, dashing out the door with Kako at his heels. "Kouichi, lock up for me!" the bandana boy screamed as he threw the gate door open.

Still trying to get over the shock, Kouichi nodded. "Let's...just go. And not a word of this to _anyone_," he growled, mainly to Shinya.

Shinya and Tomoki exchanged grins. "Oh, right," Shinya agreed. "Not to _anyone_."

-------------------------------------

Junpei winced as he was thrown back on the wall. He had half a mind to digivolve, but he wasn't sure it would be so wise.

"So, what's the matter, Shibayama? Helpless now that your freshmen friend can't bust you out of this mess?" one of them sneered.

His eyes slid shut as they slugged him again. "R-Ritsuo, _you_ know he's not just a freshmen," he stuttered. There was a hope of getting help from at least Ritsuo. After all, the older boy was the one who had taken the time to know Junpei and had stayed out of the drug crimes the others committed.

But now, there seemed to be no hope. In response, Ritsuo merely grunted and drove his fist into Junpei's stomach. Junpei choked, doubling over. He felt like throwing up. Ritsuo walked up to Junpei and hissed, "I assume you'll be joining us, isn't that _right_?"

All he could do in response was scream as one of them yanked on his hair. _Why can't I digivolve?_ Tears fell down his face, clearing the dirt from his eyes. When at last they dropped him, Junpei drew a shaky breath. _Blitzmon...I'm sorry. I'm just plain worthless_, Junpei thought, choking as a foot was brought down on his back.

"Remember, Junpei. Your contract isn't over."

The footsteps faded into the distance. For the longest time, Junpei lay there, trying to regain his normal breathing pattern. "Blitzmon," he croaked a while later. "D-do you think I should have digivolved?"

Silence met him. But Junpei knew Blitzmon was there. Perhaps he had been wrong. Perhaps he should have digivolved. To Junpei, digivolving would have been the same as outnumbering them with guns. It was wrong. He couldn't just attack them. Shakily, he rose to his feet and wiped his eyes, a small smile on his lips. "W-well...let's go."

It would be a harsh month, he realized, but he was up to the challenge. After all, Takuya managed to survive as Kanaye's lackey. Why couldn't he?

-------------------------------------

The long weeks that passed by tormented Rai as she recalled every word of her conversation with Marise. They haunted her like an endless song. _An annoying song_, she thought, slamming the papers on the desk absentmindedly while glaring at them. "Class dismissed," she growled, irritated when the bell rang.

Quickly and silently, the class scurried out, Kako and the twins last.

"I'm _still_ not forgiving you for that comment!" Kako declared, kicking Kouji's shoulder.

"Ow!"

"So you better apologize!"

"OW!"

"And hope I accept!"

"OW! KOUICHI CALL YOUR GIRLFRIEND OFF!"

"She's _not_ my girlfriend!" Kouichi screamed.

Rai's face fell as they exited. The pain burned brighter than ever. Hideki, the restaurant, Marise...she wished none of them existed. It seemed to lead her to greater pain than she needed to be in.

And it was even worse to remember Marise's words.

-FLASHBACK-

"_Now, Rai_," _rasped Marise as he sat up straight_. "_What can I do for you_?"

"_We need to talk about Hideki_." _Her voice was steady, but she realized that if they went too deep on the matter, she would shatter_. _She had to keep it to the point if she wanted to play it safe_.

_Marise let out a sigh_. "_Rai, you know you shouldn't push him away like that. He'll come back_," he _murmured_.

_She held a defiant look on her face_. "No," _growled Rai_, "_he won't_! _I don't want him to_! _Just tell him to stay away from me_!" _She knew she sounded childish, but she couldn't help it_.

_Silence overcame her when Marise turned to her, eyes piercing into her_. _He was aiming for her soul, she knew, and there wasn't much she could do to stop him_. _This time, he seemed to hold back_. _There was a slight hint of pity in his eyes, one Rai was growing to hate_. _He stood up, holding out a hand when she came to help for him. In a firm voice that was gentle at the same time, he asked_, "_Did you know Harumi did that to me the first time I met her_?_ The very first second that I approached her to ask if she had an eraser, she told me-threatened me-by saying_, '_If you ever fall in love with me, Seraphimon, I'll kill you_.' _But that was why I loved her_."

_Rai knew what was coming next_. _She hated it_. _The truth was unbearable, and she accepted that fact_. _But when Marise used it against her, it was equivalent to being tortured by being put in the same room with a quiet Hideki_. _Guilt_. _Yes, it brought guilt_.

_He continued_, "_You know that is why he loves you. You can understand him. What do you think would have happened, Rai, if I married someone other than Harumi_? _How would I explain my sudden death_? _I couldn't_. _It would be impossible_. _With Harumi, I could easily accept the fact that we'd both die_. _Of course, Aizawa disapproved greatly. But sometimes, there is no point of return_. _Angels choose their commitments wisely, but there are times when duty should not get in the way of love, Rai_. _You're blinded with your duty. There is more in life for you to do_." _A smile broke through his face_.

_Her eyes filled with anger_. "_If you are in any way suggesting I marry and have children_, no, _Marise, I think my work is enough_," _she growled_. _Rai sighed and shook her head_. "_Why did you have to hold back_? _You should have just allowed Seraphimon to move on_."

_Marise shook his head_. "_There is a reason_," _he replied softly_. "_Hideki_..._his wings were ready from the start. But when they failed him, he lost all hope_. _That is why I could not allow Seraphimon or myself to move on_. _Now, however, I see new wings unfurling. Soon, with enough training, they'll be ready_. _Perhaps the Digital World will no longer be parallel to our world_. _Perhaps all parallels will vanish_. _I cannot be sure, Rai, but I know this_. _Hideki is waiting for you, even now. I suggest you spend your time with him as best as you can_."

_She was about to open her mouth, but he stopped her with a raised hand and said_, _voice growing in volume_, "_Separating yourself from him will only worsen the pain. Regret is one thing that isn't wanted in a parting_. _Don't let either of you regret not spending time together, Rai_." _Inhaling sharply, he collapsed back in his seat_. "_And now, I should rest. Whatever your choice, Rai_, _make sure you don't regret it later_."

-END FLASHBACK-

Rai fell back in her chair, tears streaming down her face. The past few days had been utter hell for her. Looking at Kako or anyone for that matter somehow linked back to Hideki. It hurt her. She was already beginning to regret everything. But she couldn't. If she did, he would hurt more.

Or was Marise right? Would he accept her death more easily if she spent more time with him?

The thought triggered more tears to flow down, stinging her eyes. Rai coughed and sniffed, grabbing a tissue and quickly wiping her eyes and blowing her nose. _I hate talking to Marise_, she realized, slumping back in her seat. _He always has to be right. I wonder how Harumi felt being married to him_.

The thought of a happy life with Hideki...

Rai stood up, wiping her eyes with her sleeve. She looked out the window and shook her head. "I need to get lunch," she muttered.

The thought of being by his side, not as Ophanimon, but as herself...

She walked out the door after turning off the lights. As she locked it, a thought occurred to her. Perhaps she could talk to Hideki today, if she knew what random job he was at. Over lunch, even.

Those thoughts were what brightened her life, much like the sun would the sky.

A warm feeling flew through her as she took a step forward. _One day, Hideki, maybe I can accept those words...just give me time, and maybe...one day..._

She wanted to be with him.

_I will be kind to you someday_. _It's a promise_.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Not much to say other than the chapter feels short, but…oh. Next chapter might seem choppy. There'll be a lot more flashbacks, too, I guess.

Thank You for the reviews because they were awesome and helped me get the Ch. 17 done-

**Lady Hikari-Yami, Catwarrior, Winter's Light, GemmaniGirl, The Light's Refrain**

Review or PM or Flame.


	18. Fly High

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Fly High-The Bird's Eye View

-------------------------------------

Kako sat, staring at the suitcase. Hideki had said that she could go, but...

She didn't want to.

Nervously, she began packing, ignoring Piximon's hovering presence.

"You gonna take me? Please, Kako? Please? I wanna go to Hawaii! I won't bug you to do your homework!" promised the digimon, darting back and forth through the air.

That wasn't exactly what Kako was worried about at the moment. In three hours, she would be on a plane, sitting by Kouji. She was panicking.

"Kako, are you done yet?" Hideki called from the kitchen.

She was going to Hawaii, and Hideki wasn't even back with Rai yet. What was worse was that it would probably affect her entire relationship with Kouichi. It was what he intended, she knew. Kako groaned and threw in the rest of her things. "Come on, Piximon," she mumbled, pulling up the suitcase. "You can pass for a stuffed animal."

"Kako!"

"I'm _coming_!" she snapped, storming to the front, suitcase behind her. Piximon was in one arm, then on her head as Kako muttered, "Let's go." All she wanted was to get this over with.

Hideki rolled his eyes. "Finally, complete silence. It's a miracle. I think I'll let Kouichi have a minute break today," he breathed in relief. Noticing Kako's annoyed look, he smiled and walked towards the door. "Come on, I need my break, too."

-------------------------------------

There was silence. Kouichi gazed at the still figure of his brother. What could he say? "Kouji..." The name was a bare whisper on his lips, and yet his brother still turned around. Kouichi shut his eyes. Duskmon was fading, his family was broken, and his brother was a link on the edge of snapping. Quietly, Kouichi inclined his head. "Good luck," he murmured, not sure of the meaning of his words himself.

Kouji smiled slightly, accepting the ticket from his mother and the hug that followed. The entire time, however, his eyes were glued on his brother. Kouichi was trusting him. Nothing in the world could make Kouji betray that trust. He couldn't. Saying his good-bye's, Kouji waved and walked to the gate where he found Kako, gazing at the carpet with a terrified look on her face.

"You okay?" he asked, taking a seat to her left. The thought of having to go through the entire trip frightened him, but he grew to accept it. It would only be for a while after all.

Kako nodded, not sure if she could trust her voice. Piximon was asleep on her lap. She herself was ready to sleep. Finally, she murmured, "I get the window seat." It was all she could do to stay awake and hold a civilized conversation with Kouji.

Kouji shrugged. "Fine, we'll switch off."

Too tired to argue, Kako just nodded. With a sigh, she sat back in her seat and shut her eyes. "Tell me when the flight comes," she muttered. He grunted in response, gazing expectantly at the counter. It would be a long wait, he realized. Kouji sat back, eyes still glued to the counter. He might as well rest.

-------------------------------------

An hour and many minutes later, the two were on the plane. Kako had the window seat, but Kouji guessed she wouldn't hold out for long. He was in the middle seat, next to a rather lively lady who kept pestering him with questions.

"Oh, are you two brother and sister?" she asked as soon as she sat down.

Immediately, Kouji guessed he wouldn't like her much. He had always been quiet in public without his friends. After all, why talk to strangers without a reason? That was his reasoning. "No," he answered bluntly, looking out the window as much as he could.

Kako stared out the window absentmindedly, ignoring the conversation Kouji was trying to avoid and Piximon's snoring. Her eyelids felt heavy, eventually, however slowly, shutting and giving her the sleep that her mind and body longed for.

Kouji, noticing this, gazed at the seatbelt sign.

No light.

He smirked slightly, unbuckling himself and Kako, then standing up. With some difficulty (and after pushing Piximon to the floor) he placed Kako in his previous seat, put her seatbelt on, then sat down and buckled up himself, staring at the window.

Piximon went completely unnoticed. The digimon, now awake, scowled and floated up, giving Kouji a sound smack on the head before returning to Kako's lap.

Now freed from the annoying conversation, Kouji took his time to gaze at the sparkling blue waters below. Every now and then there would be a cloud or two blocking the view. But when they cleared, Kouji would find the sight more breath taking than the previous. He just wished he could share it.

Tired, Kouji looked at the sleeping form of Kako. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't understand her. Kouji soon found himself leaning over towards her. His heart was racing, and he did his best not to breathe, afraid Kako would wake at the slightest sound.

There was an incoherent jumble of words. Kako turned her upper body away from Kouji. Somehow, he stopped himself from falling. Instead, he drew a breath and leaned back in his seat, nearly jumping at the touch of Kako's head on his shoulder. Kouji sat there, frozen for several minutes before he finally relaxed back in his seat and shut his eyes, deciding to follow everyone else's example and sleep.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi lay on his bed, thoughts focused on Kouji and Kako. Half of his mind told him to digivolve into Velgemon and go after them. The other half seemed to be bugging him about something else. _I'm sorry,_ he thought. _I can't help it if I don't seem to be accepting you_.

It was true. After the first few days, all changes ceased to be. Kouichi was sure it wasn't because he was pushing his other side away again. In fact, he made sure to do the opposite. Yet for some reason, he remained the same Kouichi, completely untouched by his shocking experience.

It was bugging him.

"Kouichi."

Surprised, the boy sat up and looked at the fading form of Duskmon. His heart fell immediately. Slowly, day-by-day, Duskmon was fading into nothing. It hurt to see this. Silently, Kouichi shut his eyes. "Duskmon," he murmured.

"You should be training with Seraphimon."

Something was troubling Kouichi, and it wasn't just his other half. "Duskmon," he repeated.

"He's probably waiting."

Suddenly, it made sense why Duskmon wasn't replying. Kouichi opened his eyes. He was in darkness. His comatose body lay on the bed, Duskmon staring at it, eyes void of any emotion. Kouichi himself was in the same darkness where he had first found his other half, with a clear view of what was going on in the surroundings of his body. For a split second, there was a light that shone from nowhere-the next second, a mirror image stood before him. Awkwardly, Kouichi stared at his shoes. "Uhh..."

His other self got to the point. "You're guilty."

"What?"

"You're guilty," the second Kouichi repeated. "Stop being guilty."

Guilt? He was guilty, and he hadn't known. Was it really guilt? Kouichi, unsure, was about to open his mouth when he found himself staring at Duskmon.

He was awake.

Confused, Kouichi sat up and pinched his wrist. Much to his chagrin, pain flooded through. Weakly, Kouichi stood up and acknowledged the digimon's presence with a nod. As he made for the door, he asked, "Was I asleep long?"

Duskmon shrugged. "You know...Kako owes me one last favor," he suddenly mumbled.

Kouichi nodded and murmured, "What about it?" He was both curious and afraid of what Duskmon might ask.

There was a silence. Kouichi turned around and found Duskmon gazing at him. There was a conflict in his eyes, one that made Kouichi really wonder what his intentions were. As a shiver ran up his spine, then back down, Duskmon shook his head. "Never mind. I'll tell you later," he muttered. Instead, Duskmon snapped, "Get to Saito's. He'll be waiting."

Heart heavy with a swarm of feelings, Kouichi walked out of his room, afraid to look back. _Lowemon, what'll we do now?_ He wondered what life without Duskmon would be like. It didn't feel right at the least.

Lowemon appeared beside Kouichi, silent in respect to Kouichi's mood. He himself was worried about what would happen with Duskmon. Slowly, the other Warrior of Darkness was fading. All Lowemon could do was wait and see what happened. Yet with a quick glance at Kouichi, he could tell that waiting wouldn't do anything to mollify the boy. _Perhaps I should talk to Marise_, he thought, suddenly worried.

If there was one thing all of them were sure of, it was an extremely bumpy ride.

-------------------------------------

Izumi frowned at the papers in her hand. Nothing. She had nothing. In fact, Izumi was beginning to wonder if she was searching for the right thing. Silently, she turned to Takuya who was sorting through his own notes. In a quiet voice, she asked, "You got anything?" Of course he must have. Hideki, drunk or not, must have spilled thousands of secrets.

But, much to her dismay, Takuya looked up at her and shook his head. "Not a bit. I'm going to talk to Hideki today, though," he told her. Suddenly, Takuya dropped his papers. "Hey, have you seen Junpei recently?" asked the goggle boy, a frown appearing on his face. Izumi shook her head and he sighed. "Junpei's been out, Tomoki's absorbed in his little job, Shinya's actually working on homework, Kouichi's moping and training, Kouji and Kako are on that trip..." he listed, his voice growing in volume before it finally fell with a sigh. "And we're stuck here. Trying to get those two together."

Biting her lower lip, Izumi contemplated their backup option. _It won't hurt_, she decided, drawing a breath and saying, "Or we could ask Marise. Later, I mean." Nervously, Izumi held her breath, unsure of what Takuya would think.

Wide-eyed, Takuya gazed at Izumi for countless minutes, pondering exactly why he loved her. _Is it because she's naturally smart, because I just do, or because she comes up with the greatest ideas ever? Whatever it is_, he thought, gulping. _Man, do I have great taste!_ "That's..._brilliant_," he declared, looking positively amazed.

Izumi blushed. "Y-you really think so?"

"Yeah! Marise's smart! Plus, Rai talks to him a lot and Hideki's his son, so it'll be perfect!" the boy laughed.

A warm smile made it's way on Izumi's face. Finally, they would be getting somewhere. "So when are you meeting with Hideki?" she asked, stacking her papers in a neat pile and placing them on her desk.

Takuya shot a glance at the clock. "Ten minutes," he realized. Immediately, he stood up and handed his papers to Izumi. "You sure it won't be too much trouble for you to examine this all?"

She nodded. "It's fine. I've got the time, too. And besides, I've got Kazemon watching Rai. I won't miss a thing," promised Izumi, standing up and walking Takuya to the door. For a minute, they were quiet.

Then Takuya asked, "You don't think this'll happen to us, too?"

Izumi could tell he was having an internal panic. To reassure him, she placed a quick kiss on his cheek and shook her head. "Not at all," she replied in a firm voice. Opening the door, Izumi snapped, "Now hurry up and get me enough information. Should we see Marise tonight or tomorrow?"

"Tonight's good," Takuya returned, smiling and giving her a quick wave before vanishing off into the distance.

Izumi shut the door and nearly sank to the floor. She managed to save it for when she walked into her room. Immediately collapsing on the couch, she picked up the phone and dialed a number. "Hello? Mrs. Himi? Is Tomoki there?" Patiently, Izumi waited for Tomoki to come to the phone. When Mrs. Himi stated he was busy, Izumi politely thanked her and hung up.

She could understand Tomoki, but Junpei she was slightly worried about. Quickly dialing the older boy's number, Izumi pressed the phone to her ear, her heart beating wildly.

There was no answer.

Close to panicking, she dialed his home phone. His mother answered, but said he went out. When Izumi asked where, Mrs. Shibayama replied she didn't know. After thanking the woman and hanging up, Izumi pondered her other choices. Kouichi was probably training at Saito's bookstore. Resolved, the girl stood up, pulling her jacket on and grabbing a folder to put in the papers. _I'll catch him before he leaves the building_, she decided, racing out the door.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi sat down quietly, sipping his tea. Another day of training went by, and he didn't feel anywhere near ready for anything. 

"Are you alright, Kouichi?"

The gentle voice nearly made him jump. Surprised, he looked up at Mr. Saito, trembling slightly. His gaze lowered to his cup. "Y-you aren't angry, are you, sir?" he asked.

There was a small smile on Marise's face. Sighing, he shook his head and murmured, "Anger is pointless. It would have happened eventually, anyway. Are you done with your tea?" Kouichi nodded. The man picked up the cups and walked out of the door, waiting until Kouichi exited before he locked it.

Kouichi quietly exited the shop with no word of good-bye. If he had been guilty before, he was even more so now. His eyes slipped shut as he turned to his left, unsure of why he wasn't heading home. Before he took a step forward, someone called his name. Kouichi opened his eyes to find Izumi waving her hand in front of his face. She had a flustered look on her face and looked as if she ran all the way to the bookstore. Quietly, Kouichi stared at her for several seconds before he asked, "Izumi, what are you doing here?"

The girl rolled her eyes and handed him a folder. "I need your help," she told him. "Your house or mine?"

He opened the folder, skimming through the content of the first page he saw. "You're trying to get them together..." he summed up in a small voice. Nodding, Kouichi turned around. "My house. I have a feeling Duskmon might have some input here." There was another fact Kouichi failed to mention as they walked to his house, the small insignificant detail of a diary and its content, which never seemed to fail in astounding Kouichi with its truths.

-------------------------------------

Takuya swallowed, unsure of what to think. "S-So..." he stuttered, staring wide-eyed as Hideki downed another glass of beer. His eyes widened more, if it was even possible. _I'm being scarred. Agunimon, help me!_

The young man slumped down on the table. "Sorry for dragging you here, goggle brain," Hideki said in his slurred voice. "I just had to get it out of my system."

_More like get it in his system_, Takuya thought, making a face. "Can't you just go profess your undying love to her or something?" he asked. In truth, Takuya wished he had just kept his mouth shut so he and Izumi didn't have to go through this. If anything, it was more that he wished he didn't have to go through this. Takuya was positive the biology teacher wasn't getting wasted in front of Izumi's eyes.

"She won't listen," Hideki mumbled.

Takuya was getting frustrated and slightly nauseated. Angrily, he dragged Hideki to his feet and out of the bar. "First off, I wasn't supposed to be in there. Second, I think I'll die from alcohol poisons that float in the air along with tobacco. Third, _what is it with you and Ms. Kawai_?" Takuya screamed. A thought hit him--they were stuck there. He couldn't allow Hideki to drive (and even if Hideki could, he wouldn't allow it). With a sigh, Takuya drew his cell phone out of his pocket and quickly called a cab.

Ten minutes later, both sat down at a bench, waiting by the street for the cab. Takuya was silent, wondering why he couldn't just accept the facts sometimes. His eyes were downcast and his stomach was bubbling angrily.

"Y-You know, she's wrong," Hideki suddenly said.

The goggle boy looked up. He had a slightly annoyed look on his face. "Who?" Takuya snapped. It wasn't that he cared, but that he wanted Hideki to stop talking.

There was silence from then on. A few minutes later, the cab came. Quickly giving the driver Hideki's address, Takuya added, "Don't ask or you'll find your car in ashes." The threat was just another result of his newly found foul mood. In a way, Takuya was reminded of Kouji.

The ride was quiet to the end, even when Takuya handed the money (most of it from Hideki's wallet which he managed to snatch after the sixth cup). It was then that Hideki continued his conversation from before while they walked to the front door. "I wouldn't...find it so hard...if she was with me," he mumbled. "It would hurt, but not so much as now." Hideki let out a sigh. "If Izumi ever does that to you, just ignore her yelling," he advised.

For the longest time, key dangling in his hand, Takuya stared at Hideki, unsure of whether he was sober or not. He was about to ask, but thought better of it. Instead, Takuya opened the door and pushed Hideki inside. "Shut up and get some sleep. You're blabbering. We'll continue your therapy lessons _tomorrow_," he snapped. After dropping the key on the table, pushing Hideki in the direction of his room, and yelling at Hideki to lock the door, Takuya stormed out the door, slamming it behind him..

Hideki absentmindedly nodded, too tired to object to the comment about therapy lessons. _I don't need therapy_, his mind yelled weakly. He soon found his way under the covers of his bed. It wasn't hard to understand what was going on around him, drunk or not. Takuya was trying to help him and Izumi was possibly with Rai. But maybe he was being selfish.

_Rai_, thought Hideki, eyes slipping shut easily, _maybe I'm just being selfish. Maybe_...

After all, angels chose their commitments wisely. Who was he to argue?

-------------------------------------

About half an hour later, in Kouichi's room, Izumi sat in the chair by his desk, watching as Kouichi calmly sorted through the information she and Takuya had collected. Izumi assumed Duskmon had gone to mope elsewhere, but couldn't be sure. Ms. Kimura had gone out shopping.

"So what did you find?" Izumi asked eagerly. "And where's your jacket? You usually wear it, don't you?"

Kouichi shook his head. "My jacket...I don't know. And I can't be sure, but from what I've discovered from some..._sources_, I think Rai has something up her sleeve," he revealed.

"Sources?" Izumi repeated. "Wait-she's planning something?"

Conveniently ignoring the first question, Kouichi nodded. He stood up and stretched his cramped body. "Yeah," he murmured. She had to be. It only made sense.

Izumi didn't seem to be catching his train of thought. Raising an eyebrow, she asked, "Care to explain?"

He nodded, but stayed silent.

"_Well_?" Izumi was beginning to get exasperated, he could see.

_Leave out the diary_, Kouichi told himself. "You see," he began, "it's not that _Rai_ will die, as the previous Ophanimon did. It's something else, and I don't know what it is, but whatever it is, it's probably important, and it's causing her to push Hideki away."

There was silence.

Finally Izumi stood up and nodded. She picked up the folder. "Thanks. I'll see what I can find out from Marise tonight. Hey, have either Kouji or Kako called yet?" she asked as they walked to the front door.

With a sigh, Kouichi shook his head. "It's annoying, really, but I can't really do much about it, I guess. Mr. Saito still has my D-Tector, and I'm not even sure I could digivolve into Velgemon now, anyway." He opened the door.

Izumi slipped her shoes on and walked outside, stopping and turning around to flash a bright smile at Kouichi. "Well we've got faith in you," she told him, "so don't go screwing up! Train hard, Kouichi!"

He was surprised, but nodded and waved as she left.

Now with slightly more knowledge in the area, Izumi pulled out her cell phone to enrich Takuya. It took a while before he finally answered, and when he did so, it was with a glum, "Who is it?" rather than his usual, vibrant, "Hey, this is Takuya and you are...?"

"Takuya? This is Izumi. Are you okay?" she asked, suddenly concerned.

There was a cough. Izumi swore she heard a plate break. Running water, coughing...then more running water. Finally, after the moment's silence, Takuya replied, "Just great. You?" He broke away from the phone, involved in a sudden coughing fit.

Izumi frowned. "Takuya, are you home?"

"Yeah."

"I'll be there in five minutes, then. Don't move." Izumi quickly hung up and raced towards Takuya's house, wondering exactly what was wrong with him.

-------------------------------------

Takuya ran to the bathroom for the fifth time that day, hovering over the toilet as his insides threatened to come out. For the second time, nothing came. He began coughing as he stood up straight and walked towards the sink to wash his face. It had been an endless cycle for an hour now. He couldn't get the stench out of his system...it was as if Hideki was rotting.

_I'm never going to drink when I grow up_, Takuya thought, turning back to the toilet again as he gagged.

There was a sound of the doorbell ringing. _Izumi_, he recognized. She had said she was coming. Unfortunately when she called, he had been in the middle of actually throwing up. Managing a shaky breath, he washed his face once more and walked out of the bathroom in time to see Shinya answer the door.

"Izumi! Wow, what are you doing here? I didn't know Takuya in-er...hi, Takuya," the young Kanbara said, hastily looking from his pale-faced brother to the startled Izumi. "Um, I'll be...in my room...doing homework." Shinya quickly darted off, seemingly understanding the situation at hand.

The girl gazed at the goggle boy, absolutely confused. "Takuya, are you sick?" she asked in a bare whisper. He was starting to scare her now.

Takuya shook his head. There was a look in his eyes, though, one that made Izumi wonder if he was fighting something back. But in the end, his vehement shake of his head won out, and Izumi questioned him no further. Slipping on his shoes, he pushed past Izumi and muttered, "Let's just...get going." Before he could take his first step, she grabbed his arm.

There, on her face, was the pure look of worry he had been dreading. "Takuya, don't lie to me. Are you okay?" Izumi asked-no, demanded. Her grip tightened on his arm. 

He made no sound. Instead, the goggle boy forced a smile and switching grips so he had a hold of her hand. "Haha...ahhh...l-let's go...talk to Marise," he suggested. He managed a few more steps with the smile still plastered on his face.

Izumi followed, unsure of what to think. The only explanation she could give was that he was sick, but something more seemed to be involved. _Like usual, we're clueless_, she noted as she shut the door.

-------------------------------------

They arrived at the bookshop several grueling minutes later. Takuya was short of breath and nearly collapsed, but managed to hold himself up. He had to; Izumi stopped time from time to send him strange glances before she continued walking again. And in those times, he had to seem perfectly normal.

But he knew he wasn't fine. As to why, he couldn't be sure. It was either the method of Hideki's venting or he was actually sick. Takuya couldn't be sure it wasn't another reason. All he knew was that Izumi couldn't know. "Hey, Izumi...do I look sick?" he suddenly asked in a whisper.

Surprised by his sudden choice to talk, Izumi jumped. Her face spun to face him. "What? Uh...sick? Oh...oh! Um..." she stuttered, reddening. "You see, funny thing is-"

"Yes or no?"

"Yes."

Takuya walked ahead of her and opened the door to the bookstore. "Well, let's go now."

Nodding, Izumi followed him, slightly nervous.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Didn't like it. It's jumping around a lot, considering I jumped a few weeks. I promise to explain it all. I've gotten that feeling back, the one where I finish a few things, but it feels like I finished nothing. Maybe because I haven't done math. I'm sorry if you hate the chapter. Didn't update right away because not everyone read, I think, and it's a bit holey. Correction: _very_ holey.

Thank you for the reviews. Thank you to everyone who has ever reviewed. Masashi Kishimoto who was talking about fan mail said;

"When I'm tired...When I'm bored...When I'm groaning in pain...When I'm sleepy...They always help to flip my heart's switch. I read them all. Thanks truly!" Masashi Kishimoto, 2000, Naruto vol. 4

THANKS, EVERYONE! I got two chapters done thanks to you. Especially-

**GemmaniGirl, Winter's Light, Catwarrior**

Review or PM or Flame.


	19. Hawaii

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Hawaii, Wash Our Troubles Away

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"Kako...Kako, we're here," Kouji murmured, a hand on the girl's shoulder as he shook her. Kouji sighed as he watched the agitated passengers stand up and push their way to the front. _We might as well wait_, he decided, sitting back down.

Piximon floated up onto Kako's head. "Hey, we're here!" the digimon realized.

Kouji shot him an annoyed look and snapped, "I just _said_ that. Why don't you people listen to me?"

"Could it be...because I should be in charge?"

Before Kouji could lean forward to attempt to strangle the laughing digimon, Kako's eyes opened. Surprised, the bandana boy fell back and cleared his throat. "Uh...we're here," he muttered, looking away.

"Oh." Kako yawned and bent down to pull up her backpack. "Hmm...mmhm...where did I put it?" Confused, Kouji looked from Piximon to Kako. The mutters finally ceased as Kako brought out a green jacket. "Oh...oops. Um..." She quickly looked at Kouji before stuffing the jacket back in and muttered, "Don't know how that got in there." Kako returned to rummaging through her bag.

Eventually the plane emptied out, leaving Kako, Kouji and Piximon to be the last to leave.

"First thing's first, I'm calling Kouichi," Kouji declared as they walked out of the plane and headed to pick up their luggage.

Immediately, Kako grabbed his arm, scaring the boy. "_DON'T_ tell him about that!" she screamed.

Kouji twitched slightly as he removed Kako's arm. "Kako," he said, brushing her away, "Why don't you and Piximon wait for our luggage? I'll go over in that corner-" Kouji pointed to the closest corner, "and I'll call Kouichi. Dea--you brought his hat, too?" Unable to stand her presence, Kouji pushed Kako towards the baggage claim area and walked to the corner to call Kouichi.

He noticed that Kako's eyes were watching him as he took out his phone. Calmly, Kouji motioned towards the baggage. Even when she turned away, Kouji got the prickly feeling that he was being watched. He calmly dialed the number, eyes glued on Kako. "Hello? Kouichi?"

"Kouji...? Hey, you guys made it?"

"No, we're in the middle of the ocean on an island that's ten feet in diameter," Kouji replied sarcastically. "Why don't you digivolve into Velgemon and get us?"

Silence met him.

Kouji rolled his eyes. _Some people just can't take sarcasm_. "So, your weird girlfriend-"

The response cut him off. "I have a girlfriend?" Kouichi sounded confused.

The bandana boy was ready to scream. Through gritted teeth, he snapped, "How dense are you? Kako!" He was sure there were people staring at him. Kouji lowered his voice and asked, "How'severyone else?" _Not as stupid as you, I hope_.

"Well, I haven't heard from Junpei, so I was about to check on him. Tomoki is wrapped up with Bok-" There was a long pause before some coughs were heard on the other line. "Sorry. I think I caught a cold. Uh, Tomoki's wrapped up with a cook book and Izumi and Takuya are trying to get the crazy adults together. So what's this about Kako? She's not my girlfriend, you know," Kouichi commented.

_Not yet_, Kouji's mind countered. In a mockingly sweet voice, he answered, "It seems that the girl who is your friend and yet not your girlfriend has stolen your jacket."

Again, silence. Finally, Kouichi burst out laughing, "So _that's_ where it went!" Kouji wasn't sure what was happening, but all he could hear was laughter.

"Sorry, I missed the joke."

"I was over at her house because Hideki was training me, and they were both yelling at me because my jacket apparently restricts my movement, so I took it off...and forgot it. And then Kako came over while I was training at Mar-I mean-Mr. Saito's, and she ended up forgetting to give it to me there because I invited her over," Kouichi told his brother. "And it was in her backpack. Say, she isn't five feet within range, is she?"

Kouji sucked his breath between gritted teeth, resisting the urge to break the phone. _Idiots_, he thought, _I'm surrounded by billions of them_. His eyes darted towards Kako, who wasn't in the spot he had left her in. _Yes, idiots_. "I have _no_ idea," he growled, "but when I find out, that stupid Piximon will be pixi_dust_ and your hat is going to get burned." Kouji pressed his back against the wall as his eyes swept the room for any sign of Kako or Piximon.

There was a snort. Kouichi muttered, "You do that. There are tons of bandanas to make up for it."

Kouji's eyes locked on Piximon. _Where's Kako?_ "You wouldn't dare," he growled.

Kouichi chuckled. "You'd be surprised. Say, is Piximon there?" the older twin asked.

"NO DAMMIT! WHY DO YOU SOUND SO HAPPY?" Kouji suddenly screamed into the phone. "I'M HANGING UP!" There was a faint sound of protest before Kouji turned his phone off and stuffed it back in his pocket, trying to regain his composure. It didn't help that he had the attention of almost everyone in the room, but he was willing to make do with whatever the milieu.

_Now where is she?_ Kouji pushed off the wall, walking towards Piximon and grabbing the digimon by a wing. "Where did she go?" he hissed, a glare focusing on Piximon.

With a swift movement, Piximon hit Kouji on the wrist, releasing himself. The two locked intense glares and Piximon spat, "I'm _trying_ to figure that out myself! I almost had her, too! But then you decided to ruin my concentration!" The digimon turned away from Kouji with a huff.

The bandana boy growled before making his way to find the luggage.

"You're too hard on him."

Kouji nearly fell over in surprise. He turned around and his jaw immediately dropped. Pointing at Kako, he yelled, "YOU! I WAS LOOKING ALL OVER FOR YOU!"

Kako ignored the dark glare on his face. "Yeah, well, I was looking for a way to lose you. I mean honestly, you didn't even think to look _behind_ you," snorted the girl, grabbing a hold of one of their bags as it passed by. "Say, you wanna help? It's pretty heavy for a boy's bag. What do you have in it? Your PS2 and every game in existence?" There was a calm air about her as she attempted to drag the bag off.

Rolling his eyes, Kouji aided her, yanking the bag up effortlessly. "You're just weak!" he muttered. _I bet even Izumi could pick this up_, he thought with disgust.

She continued to search for their other bags, completely ignoring Kouji, who stood there, blinking as he realized she was gone. Kako sighed when she found her bag and pulled it off the belt. _I can't be myself around him anymore_, she realized. _I'm going back to the polite attitude...although it doesn't seem polite around him_. Another sigh. "Piximon...?"

"Yes? Did you finish your homework before we came?" Piximon asked as he floated over, a bright look on his face.

There was an odd silence. _How can I phrase this...? I can't_, Kako thought. She was beginning to feel numb. Quickly, she shook her head. "Let's go find Kouji. He's probably grumbling to himself in some corner or another."

She was partially correct. When they found Kouji, it was only because they saw him leaving without them having collected all the baggage. "Hey! Wait up!" Kako yelled, racing after him. _BOYS ARE A PAIN_.

Kouji let out an exasperated sigh and turned around, folding his arms across his chest. When she reached him, he snapped, "What do you want?"

"Whaddya mean what do I want?" Kako was near hysterics. "Excuse me if I'm going on this trip with you because I was _FORCED!_"

"Well then you shouldn't have come!"

"I didn't _want_ to come!"

"Then go ahead and get a hotel. Wait the entire week there and then go back yourself," Kouji snarled, dragging the baggage as he continued forward.

Kako suppressed her anger and gently rubbed her temples. She was getting a headache. _Great, now we're yelling_. _Didn't he sleep? I swear, he's as grumpy as Hideki in the morning_. Biting her lower lip, Kako followed behind him at a slower pace, Piximon sitting on her head with his eyes shut.

"Hurry up, you're slowing down."

Surprised, Kako looked at Kouji. She couldn't understand, but something inside her forced her to retort, "Yeah, well maybe you should just shut up from now on. That might result in _you_ slowing down."

"That was stupid," Kouji muttered.

Childishly, Kako countered, "You're stupid." In addition, she stuck her tongue out, quickly looking at the floor when he turned around and stopped.

Kouji dropped the bags and walked towards Kako, a furious look on his face. "You know," he hissed, "I don't know what your problem is, but leave me out of it!"

"_My_ problem?" Kako repeated in disbelief. Her confusion soon turned to anger. "EXCUSE ME YOU JERK! I'M NOT THE BANDANA BRAIN WALKING AROUND WITH A COMPLETE ATTITUDE PROBLEM! And don't yell at a girl in public. It isn't nice and it leads to her beating you up."

"Oh, I'm _so_ sure," Kouji snapped.

Kako's eyes narrowed.

Poking Kako's forehead with a finger, Kouji continued, "And I suppose I shouldn't throw your stupid digimon out, either? Well sorry if I can't stand everyone suddenly going cheery on me! You know what else? YOU SHOULD HAVE JUST COME WITH YOUR BOYFRIEND!"

"HE IS NOT MY BOYFRIEND!" Kako screamed, hands reaching out to pull Kouji's ears.

"LET GO OF M-uh, hi Dad."

The two froze in place, and Piximon went limp, falling off Kako's head and onto the baggage. Turning pale, Kako let go of the bandana boy's ears and quickly bowed to his parents. "H-hello, Mr. Minamoto...uh...Mrs. Minamoto," she blurted. '_Uh, sorry to bother you right now...but...for some reason Kouichi...wanted me to come_,' Kako wanted to tell them. But it seemed too awkward to explain.

Fortunately, they made their own assumptions from fragments of the argument between Kako and Kouji. "So," Mr. Minamoto asked, "you're Kouichi's girlfriend?"

Kouji gave a nod of affirmation before Kako so much as had a say in the matter. Angrily, she shut her mouth and shot him a glare, which he brushed off with a satisfied smirk.

Satomi Minamoto offered a small smile. "So Kouichi isn't coming, then?" asked the lady, bending down to pick up Piximon and examine him. She handed him to Kako, expecting an answer.

Feeling guilty, Kako nodded. Accepting Piximon, she mumbled, "Y-yeah, he got caught up with things at home." She could understand Satomi's disappointment. _It would have been a great chance for their family to bond, but Mr. I-must-take-care-of-the-home-base had to screw it up. He _better_ be training hard_, Kako thought, making a silent vow to slaughter Kouichi on the spot if he had been slacking in her absence.

"You _will_ be staying with us, right?" There was a slight edge of nervousness in Mrs. Minamoto's voice.

Kako managed a smile, however uneasy it was. "Yes. If it's too inconvenient, I've always got friends of my brother's on the island, so I'm fine. I'll be out for the most part, too," she added.

Kousei Minamoto cleared his throat and asked, "Shall we go then? We'll talk about arrangements at home."

Despite her seemingly calm facade, Kako was incredibly worried. _What did I get myself into? And why did he have to say I was Kouichi's girlfriend? Why not just friend who happens to be a girl? That jerk_. Shooting Kouji a glare, Kako opened her backpack and dropped Piximon in, remembering not to zip it up all the way for fear of suffocating the digimon.

-------------------------------------

There was a thought that suddenly occurred to Kako during the car ride. All the time, Kouji kept glaring out the window. _Maybe_, she hypothesized, _he's just this way because he has to be with his dad and step mom. They're really nice, though._ She frowned and inconspicuously poked Kouji. "You're sulking," Kako commented.

Kouji scowled at her before returning to staring absentmindedly out the window. Being in new places made him edgy. Not to mention he wasn't exactly a morning person. Although he didn't like explaining himself, he found it useless to not answer Kako. She'd only pester him more. With a heavy sigh, Kouji returned in a mutter, "Just...tired." Much to his relief, she said nothing for the rest of the ride.

Time ceased to matter to Kouji. He wasn't sure how much time they had spent in the car. He didn't care, either. Car trips were always long to him, and so the trip to him was long. Eventually, they reached the house. There was a heavy smell of salt water in the air; Kouji guessed the beach wasn't that far off.

They had pulled up in front of a clean looking house, painted yellow. _Why bother? The sun shines enough as it is_, Kouji thought, kicking a nearby rock. It was one story, but even from the outside, it looked spacious. Kouji kicked the rock again, finding it in front of him. This time, it skidded into the sea of pebbles that was on the side of the sidewalk.

"Kouji, stop kicking the rocks and come inside," his father called out from the doorway.

Glaring at the pale gray sidewalk, Kouji violently stuffed his hands in his pockets and slumped his shoulders as he walked inside. The interior was as neat as the outside. The very first thing that met Kouji's eyes was the kitchen. White tiles, gas stove, no pots or pans lying astray.

Kako walked up to Kouji, 'accidentally' stepping on his foot. Under her breath, she muttered, "You could have at _least_ helped bring in the bags instead of spacing out." Turning to his parents, she smiled and waved. "Well, I'm off for now, sorry. I promised my brother I'd check in with him. Be back in an hour or so!"

He was slightly glad to see her leave when he saw Piximon behind her back. Kouji slipped into a chair by the table and gazed at his bags.

There was the usual silence. Tentatively, Satomi asked, "Would you like to see your room?" She was just being polite, Kouji knew. He simply shrugged, hoping they would eventually leave him alone. She sent a helpless glance in the direction of his father.

Kousei frowned at his son. "Kouji, if you'd like to tell us anything-"

"I think I'd like to see my room," Kouji interrupted, standing up and picking up his bags. "Which way is it?"

"D-down the hall. It's the second left," Satomi answered with a stammer.

Without a word of thanks, Kouji walked to his room, dropping the bags on the floor and shut the door, trying to shut out the startled murmurs of his parents' conversation. Something was wrong. He could taste it in the air, and Kouji was positive it wasn't just the salt. _So much for relaxation_, Kouji thought, falling back on his bed and shutting his eyes. The bandana boy made a mental note to take a walk by the beach later. _For relaxation_, he decided. _For relaxation_..._  
_  
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Kako twirled the cord of the phone with a finger, leaning back against the post lazily. _Pick up _any_ time now, Hideki. God, if I have to wait an hour, you're dead._ "HELLO?" Kako yelled into the phone before her brother could even answer. "You stupid idiot, I tried _five_ times! And what were you doing? Making out with another girl? God, Hideki, get a grip!" she ranted.

"Actually, Takuya was giving me therapy lessons," came the meek answer.

There was a long silence. Finally, Kako snickered, "Give him my thanks, in that case. It's about _time_. Anyway, Kouji and I made it here, no broken bones on my part. Oh, Piximon, too." She grinned sheepishly at the look the digimon gave her. "So, how's everyone back home?"

It was Hideki's turn to laugh. "Happy," he replied with an evil cackle.

"You jerk! I'm telling grandpa!"

"Yeah, how's the old guy, anyway? He isn't falling apart, is he?"

Kako smiled, silently wishing Hideki were with her. _I guess it's true. You tend to want something more when you don't have it. Especially if you live with it every day_. "No, he's fine," she replied. "I can see why he chose Hawaii as a long term vacation spot. You could have told me he ditched his principal responsibilities for _this_! Oh, and how's Kouichi?"

"I...haven't heard from him yet, actually. Da-I mean, I wasn't going to curse. Don't glare at me Takuya. Um, Saito's training him at the moment. Trying the 'other martial arts' method again. He says it's too bad you aren't here to beat the twerp up. How's twerp two, not that I care? Takuya's asking," Hideki said. What interested her was his manner when he mentioned Takuya glaring at him for 'cursing.' It didn't seem like Hideki to care what anyone thought about him cursing.

"I think he's eaten something that doesn't quite agree with him. He's all sour and grumpy. Even before the plane ride he was bearable."

"H-Hey..." Hideki murmured, suddenly sounding nervous. His voice dropped into a whisper as he asked, "Are you calling Rai after this?" When Kako affirmed this, he continued, "Could you tell her something for me?"

Her heart skipped a beat. "Y-yeah?" Kako asked eagerly. _Anything, _anything_ so long as you two are getting back together!_

Her heart nearly failed her the next second, when, in a firm voice, Hideki commanded, "Tell her I'll forget her. And...I'm sorry." He must have known Kako's reluctance, because the next thing he told her was, "Kako, you _have_ to promise me you'll tell her that. I'll go so far as to tell Kouichi all your little secrets and hand your diary over to the press." They both knew it was a weak threat, but at the moment, threats didn't matter.

Kako tightened her grip on the phone. "Y-you're drunk, aren't you?" she hissed.

"No, I'm as sober as Takuya," he replied, each word more serious than the next.

Sinking to the floor, Kako shut her eyes. _It isn't fair_...

Hideki's voice cut through her. "Kako, _promise_ me."

He was getting impatient. She had no choice. Without another word, Kako stood up and slammed the phone down on the receiver, trembling. Picking it up again, Kako dialed the next number quickly.

-------------------------------------

_My muscles...are...sore_, Kouichi thought, groaning as he stretched out on the couch.

"Kouichi, are you alright?" he heard his mother ask.

"Yeah," he replied automatically. It was nothing major. Why worry her?

"Alright..." Ms. Kimura walked into the living room, brushing a strand of her hair out of her eyes. "I'm going to visit a friend, alright? I won't be gone long, and I _don't_ want to see anything broken." Her frown was fixed in the direction of Duskmon. "Is that clear?"

Duskmon snorted and looked away. Rolling his eyes, Kouichi replied, "Yes, Mom. I'll make sure of it." As soon as his mother left, Kouichi focused his eyes in Duskmon's direction. "You broke it, didn't you?"

The digimon looked away, glaring at the white wall. Kouichi chuckled at his reaction. Before he could open his mouth to say anything, the phone rang. The boy froze, staring at where the phone was. "Duskmon...?"

"Give me a break. You lazy slob of a human," Duskmon growled, picking up the phone. _And I'm the one who's disappearing._ "Hello?" he said into the phone in a gruff voice. It was a habit, what could he say?

"Kouichi, do you have a cold? Or did I press the wrong number...?"

_Great, _her. Before he did anything else, the digimon growled, "It's Duskmon, stupid." Duskmon then turned to Kouichi and tossed the phone over. "Your g-"

"She _isn't_," Kouichi replied hotly, catching the phone and pressing it against his ear. "Hello? Kako?" He immediately regretted accepting the phone at the time. Kako was in the middle of another of her rants.

"...and _excuse_ me if I thought that digimon didn't answer phones! I mean, the rest of them are perfectly _normal_ enough, but I guess you're a stinking exception! HAH! YOU'RE WORSE THAN KOUJI!" Kako screamed. "HAND IT OVER TO KOUICHI!"

"This _is_ Kouichi."

There was an awkward silence that befell them both.

Kouichi let out a sigh. "Kako?" he called into the phone.

"Sorry."

He hid a smile, aware of Duskmon's presence. "It's okay. So what's this about Kouji? Has he been doing something illegal or something? The last thing I heard from him was something about me being too cheery. I was tired..." he mumbled in defense.

Kako burst into laughter. When it finally died down, she told him, "I heard that part. He was pretty loud. About half the people were staring at him. Maybe more. I think it's just the fact that he's with your dad and step mom. I mean, if I were him, I guess I'd be pretty moody, too..." She trailed off into silence once more.

Kouichi could hear her sigh. He bit his lower lip. Already, he was starting to miss his brother and Kako. "S-so...how's Hawaii?" asked Kouichi, hoping to make some sort of conversation. _Anything so I can keep talking_, he thought, suddenly feeling desperate.

_Oh, yes, it's such a Romeo and Juliet scene_, Duskmon cackled.

Kouichi shot the digimon a glare but said nothing when Kako began to talk.

"W-well, you know how Hideki and Rai are...and...yeah..." Kako began to murmur bits of sentences quickly, too fast for Kouichi to catch.

Not understanding the rest of her blabber, he advised, "Sentences would work, Kako."

"Sorry. See I was talking to Hideki-"

"Got that part."

"Shut up so I can tell this without having a breakdown again!"

Slightly disappointed, Kouichi obliged. "Mmm..."

Kako drew a breath before explaining, "I called Hideki and we were talking for a while. Apparently Takuya's giving him therapy lessons...?"

There was silence. Kouichi had a grin on his face as he held back a laugh. She had told him to shut up, after all.

"CONFIRMATION, PLEASE?" Kako practically screamed.

"Oh, I can talk now?" Kouichi asked, feigning innocence.

Muttering something, Kako snapped, "As I was saying, Hideki was talking to me and he told me to tell Rai..." Again, she trailed off.

Completely ignoring the fact that the silence was getting annoying, Kouichi sat up. The pain in his muscles went away for that fleeting moment. "That they're getting back together?" Kouichi inquired eagerly, unable to stand the silence.

"No...Hideki told me to tell Rai...that he would forget her."

_I must be hearing things_, Kouichi thought, placing the phone down as a hand flew to his head to check for a fever.

"You heard just fine," Duskmon snapped. "Cut the dramatics."

Sticking his tongue out at Duskmon, Kouichi picked up the phone. "It isn't April Fool's day, Kako."

"I WAS SERIOUS YOU STUPID IDIOT. I WAS SERIOUS. AND IF YOU AREN'T GOING TO HELP ME-"

"Wait, Kako-"

"-FINE! IT'S JUST FINE!"

"No, Kako I-"

"I'LL JUST TELL HER THEN!"

"KAKO WOULD YOU-" Kouichi began to yell before the droning sound of the cut off line met his ears. Twitching, he turned to Duskmon. "She hung up on me!" the boy snapped.

Duskmon rolled his eyes. "Oh, the horror of it all," he replied with dry sarcasm. _You did want to hear her voice. What better way than full volume_?

Kouichi scowled and placed the phone on the receiver. "If Takuya's giving Hideki therapy lessons, he isn't doing a very good job of it."

"Can _anyone_ give the idiot proper lessons? His head's in the clouds," Duskmon retorted. He said this with a hint of fondness in his voice, one only Lowemon could decipher. Much to his relief, the warrior of darkness wasn't anywhere near. He hid his small smile with an annoyed look. If these were going to be his last few days, he'd go down in his style. A smirk suddenly formed on his lips as he declared, "Kouichi has a girlfriend. How very befitting. I think I'll go tell everyone else."

"SHE ISN'T MY GIRLFRIEND!"

"Not yet."

"W-well-"

"Aha, so you agree."

"SHE ISN'T MY GIRLFRIEND!" Kouichi screamed again.

Duskmon smoothly countered, "And Kouji isn't your brother."

At the mention of his twin, Kouichi lapsed into silence. Kouji and Duskmon...the resemblance personality wise was uncanny. Each second he spent with one or the other, Kouichi could see more of how they were alike. Strange, and yet comforting. _Maybe that's why they hate each other so much_, Kouichi mused, lying back down on the couch and sighing.

"What?" Duskmon snapped.

"I didn't do anything," Kouichi replied absentmindedly. His eyes slipped shut.

Duskmon let out an annoyed growl, "You didn't counter!"

"Do I have to?"

"Yes!"

_We probably all hate_..._to see how we really are_...

"Tough, then."

It made so much sense.

"You can't just back out like that!"

_But all we can see_..._in our mirror selves are our faults. Maybe, one day_...

"I just did."

"I'm going to break another plate."

"Duskmon, NO!"

_One day, they'll realize there's more to it_. _They'll see through the fog of hate_. _Maybe they'll even find the real light within themselves_. _One day_...

He hoped it was soon.

-------------------------------------

Kouji instantly felt calmed by the warm sand that met his feet. In the last minutes of the setting sun, he was the last on the beach. Warmth flooded through him, despite the cool air.

"It's nice, isn't it?" Kako asked in a whisper as she walked up beside him.

Absentmindedly, Kouji nodded. His eyes were focused on the rays of the sun that cast a brilliant display of colors across the sky.

There was a sigh beside him. "Kouichi always said...sunsets...are better...than sunrises. The truth is, I always thought that sunrises are soft. They definitely can be, but ultimately, sunsets are softer," she told him, taking a seat.

Kouji felt compelled to sit down as well, and did so, shutting his eyes at the sudden spray of the ocean in his face. Part of him didn't want to listen to her, but he did, all the while staring at the sky.

"I don't know...you think there could be an answer out there? In the sunset, I mean."

"He's asleep?" Kouji asked. He didn't really care for where she was heading with all her talking. He wanted to be alone.

Kako turned her head in his direction, but Kouji's eyes were strictly glued onto the sky when he finally opened them. "Piximon? Y-yeah..." she murmured. Looking back down at the sand by her fingers, she whispered, "What do you think, Kouji? Do you prefer being in the dark?"

_Why won't she leave?_ "Depends on the meaning."

"Do you prefer being in the dark?" Kako repeated.

"No, I don't." _Now be quiet and leave me alone_.

"Townsfolk," she muttered under her breath, standing up and brushing away the sand. Hesitantly, she asked, "You...wouldn't help any stranger, would you?"

"Not that I know of," Kouji muttered. He couldn't understand why he wasn't shaking her off.

Kako quietly stared at him. "Hideki...told me to tell Rai that he would forget about her. I...I don't know if I should. I blew up at Kouichi and...I...I don't know why. But I was hoping...maybe a sunset would give me the answer. I-"

"That's _stupid_," Kouji snapped, rising to his feet immediately. "A sky won't give you answers, Kako. Get real."

"It's not the sky, Kouji. It's the people I remember when I stare at the sky."

For the first time that hour, as the sky's golden glow slowly faded, Kouji whirled around to face Kako. There wasn't the slightest hint of emotion on her face although he could have sworn she was trembling seconds ago. A complete, stolid figure.

"You hate being in the dark because you're afraid of not determining your own fate. You think it's better if you know what's going on so you can ease people into what you think are their destinies. I'm sorry, Kouji, but sometimes, being practical isn't enough." Quietly, she walked up to him and stopped. They were shoulder to shoulder, looking in completely different directions. "My fault is looking back. Yours is looking forward. Sometimes it takes a dream to move forward."

There was a split second where Kouji found himself immobilized. He wasn't sure if it was from fear or surprise. The next second, when he was finally free to turn his head, he caught Kako walking back to the house.

_A dream_..._she said it took a dream to move forward_. _I have a dream, and it's as good as any other_. Kouji gazed at her retreating figure. "Kako! Even the practical can dream!" he yelled. He couldn't be sure that she heard him, but he swore for a slight moment that she stopped in her tracks.

It was enough of a sign for Kouji. As the waves crawled up the shore before falling back into the large body of water, Kouji smiled softly to himself. As the waves continuously moved, it felt as if his troubles were being dragged and washed away...into the sea. "Well," Kouji chuckled, "You're certainly a sea of troubles. I told myself I was going to relax this time...concentrate more on the family. But hey, that's tomorrow morning. She asked for it..."

-------------------------------------

A/N-

I kind of imagined that to be shorter. Hm. And I keep switching styles. I've gone from my style to a more descriptive style to manga style (without the pictures) and back to the more descriptive style that has now apparently become my style. I don't know. Am I switching styles? (tell me, please, because I can't tell myself)

Heehee, it looks like all the readers are having some downtime? Same here! I don't know, if this problem persists for both of us, I'm going to have to stop working on the story until summer. Of course, I'll still be writing it, just not as actively and I won't be posting (until the summer!). Opinions would be nice.

Speaking of stories, I had some time a while ago and was looking through the profiles of the people who enlisted me in their favorites and on their author alerts. I was mainly looking for good stories to read. But see, it was either that they didn't have any stories up or that the stories they had were longer than four chapters. () So, sorry. If you want me to read your stories, I'd be more than glad to...I just need time. Recommendations are good. Anyway, I've been writing more than reading (other than manga) and that isn't necessarily smart.

Thank you for the reviews-

**PrincessYami, GemmaniGirl**, **Winter's Light**, **Catwarrior**

Review or PM or Flame


	20. Fleeting Theories

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Fleeting Theories

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For the first time in a long time, Takuya took his goggles off willingly. "That's _it_!" he screamed, throwing them on the ground. "I've had it with you! No wonder Kako's crazy! She has to live with _you_!" He was becoming hysterical.

Hideki was sitting down on the couch, eyes glued to the TV as he skillfully evaded an enemy's attack. "Hah! Take that you-"

"AND YOU AREN'T EVEN LISTENING TO ME! IT'S NO WONDER YOU AREN'T SUCCESSFUL IN _ANYTHING_!"

"Hey, what do you call _this_?" Hideki snapped, motioning to the TV.

Takuya stuck his tongue out and picked up his goggles. "It's not real life. Besides," he added in a dry voice, "my _brother_ could do better than that. I give up on you. Izumi said maybe you two weren't a lost case, but it's hopeless. You guys are _past_ lost!"

There was a chuckle. "Glad you finally gave up," Hideki commented. "I was getting bored. Let's see your skills, then." He held the controller out to Takuya who had just put on his goggles again.

_No, don't do it! You have to get him back together wi-just take the controller!_ Without another thought, Takuya snatched the controller out of Hideki's hands and maneuvered through the game. "Take that!" he muttered under his breath.

_Izumi's going to kill me_.

-------------------------------------

Izumi drew a breath, remembering Marise's words. Takuya and Hideki, she recognized, were a lost cause. _Boys give up too easily_, she thought.

_That's true. I just went to check up on them and they're both goofing off,_ Kazemon laughed.

Silent fury racked Izumi's body as she knocked on the door in front of her violently. When it opened, Izumi sighed and shook her head. "Ms. Kawai, you don't mind if I come in, do you?" she asked.

Rai stood at the doorway, utterly surprised at who was at the door. _So long as Hideki doesn't come over, it's perfectly fine_, she thought in relief, stepping to the side and motioning for the girl to come in.

She bit her lower lip. _Izumi, part one is overwith. Come on, you can do it_. Izumi smiled sweetly and stepped inside. She took a moment to observe her surroundings.

Neat, organized...everything she expected from her teacher. The mantle of the fireplace was the only obtrusive part of the room. Everything else could be taken in by the eye. On the mantle, there was a countless clutter of picture frames, most lying face down, others positioned at strange angles. Izumi tilted her head to the side out of confusion. It was incredibly strange, but then again, she could expect it from Rai.

"So what brought you to my...humble abode?" questioned Rai, sitting down on the couch and motioning for Izumi to take a seat.

Being straightforward was a dangerous method, one that Izumi planned for later, if things went well. But she guessed it would be a rocky start and kept her method to circles. Clearing her throat, Izumi took a seat in the unoccupied couch adjacent to the one Rai sat on. Just as she sat down, she replied, "I just had a few questions. I hope you don't mind." She noticed the edges of Ms. Kawai's mouth twitch. _Keep it safe, Izumi_, she warned herself, swallowing. "You see, I-"

It happened so fast, Izumi was shocked. Rai stood up immediately, startling Izumi to pause in midsentence. "Would you like anything to eat?" asked Rai, smiling sweetly. "A drink, perhaps? I'll go fix something up. Keep talking, okay?"

Marise's words from the night prior suddenly flooded into Izumi's head. '_She doesn't like to talk about personal matters. She'll avoid them like bats in the daylight_.'

_I get what he meant_, thought Izumi, face falling to the sour look of annoyance. _I'll just play along_. She let out a distressed sigh and fell back in her seat, continuing rather dramatically, "Well, you know I was talking to Takuya the other day."

"Were you?"

"Yes...he seemed a bit under the weather."

Rai came back out with a plate of chips. "Oh? What happened?" she asked, dashing back into the kitchen.

Izumi was under the impression that Rai was afraid to show any face during the talk. _Maybe she leaks out emotions facially...? Whatever it is, it's working_, she realized. A change in tactics was made. She quieted down, waiting when Rai brought out some soda. The biology teacher looked flustered. "Why don't I help?" Izumi suggested, standing up and accompanying Rai to the kitchen.

There was a definite change in the air. Ms. Kawai twitched again. "That's _really_ alright, dear," she murmured, turning around Izumi and pushing her back to the couch. "Wait here...I'll make cookies."

"I'd just _love_ to help," Izumi insisted, pushing the hands aside and walking back into the kitchen.

Realizing Izumi would continue her stubborn act, Ms. Kawai gave in. Pulling out the ingredients one by one, she murmured, "Why don't you continue?"

_Who wants to play the blame game? If it actually works._ Izumi smiled, turning away from her teacher as she measured the flour. "It seems there was a boy's afternoon out."

"Oh?" Izumi turned around quickly to catch a glimpse of a facial expression. Quizzical was the only word to describe Rai.

"Yes. Apparently, he was talking to Hideki. The two went out for that day...and Hideki got drunk," Izumi said, careful not to insert any emotion in her voice. She had her best poker face on, too. Suddenly, Izumi burst out laughing, managing to tell Ms. Kawai between peals of laughter, "And he spent the hour after that throwing up. The entire time, he just said he wasn't sick. It was after I threatened to go get Kouichi that he told me..." She inserted a dramatic pause here and dumped the sugar into the bowl.

Tensing up, Ms. Kawai took the bowl from Izumi to add the rest of the ingredients. Her eyes were stuck on Izumi. Due to her absentmindedness with the concoction at hand, she nearly dumped the entire bottle of vanilla extract in. "He told you...?" Rai was hooked. It was perfect.

Quickly grabbing the bottle of vanilla extract, Izumi continued, "He told me he had a few cups, too. Do you have anything to cure for a hangover? See, I mean, you had to handle Hideki and all his hangovers, right? So I figured you'd be able to help me." Managing to look perfectly innocent, Izumi smiled brightly.

The circles were working. Rai walked to the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle, handing it to Izumi. "Believe me, you don't want to ask. Yes, take the bottle. I can always make more," she sounded annoyed as she continued, "I had to make Hideki drink about a liter of this before he stopped drinking. Unfortunately, the results only lasted for a week."

Izumi took the bottle. _Perfect. It's going well_. "Well, I'd hate to leave the cookies undone. Say, do you have any other advice on idiots?" she asked with a grin.

Rai replied with a grim look of her own. "Oh, believe me. I ought to write a book."

-------------------------------------

Dinner had been silent for Kouichi. There would be no laughs, no yelling, just dinner. Duskmon was brooding in his room. His mother was off at work, leaving Kouichi even more lonely than before. _Dang, why does she have to work the extra hours?_ Uncomfortably, he sat down and stared at his dinner.

Training with Marise had been intense. He had spent the entire day there; the first half with Mr. Tsukishiro and the second with Marise. _An intense sparring session that lasted for hours and then extreme meditation. At least I actually concentrated._

His thoughts drifted to Izumi and Takuya. _Takuya told me he's trying a new method of getting Hideki and Rai back together...I wonder what it is_, he thought, moving the rice around with his chopsticks. Kouichi's eyes were glazed over, staring endlessly at the wall in front of him. Focused on nothing, he continued to move the rice back and forth, creating a rhythm for lack of anything to do.

The reels in his mind were slowly coming to a stop. Marise, Kanaye, Rai, Hideki, Kako...Takuya and the others...Mr. Tsukishiro, even. All of them...all of them were connected in this game. Sighing in annoyance, Kouichi leaned back in his chair, continuing his hand movements. Just when he thought things were piecing together, they fell apart. There was a larger picture, and he just couldn't see what it was yet. What he thought was a puzzle was just a broken piece of the bigger picture.

_Life stinks_. Kouichi looked back down at his food. Kako and Kouji. Hawaii. His father, his step mother--technically, she _was_ his step mother as well--and that supposed new child. Nothing was connecting. _Come to think of it_, the boy realized, _Dad doesn't seem like the type of guy to do something idiotic like that. Of course, unless the two really wanted Kouji with them to break off all connections_..._  
_  
Kouichi speared a carrot, bringing it up to his mouth, then dropping it.

There was no question about it.

He was worried.

Sighing, Kouichi covered his dinner and shoved it into the fridge. "I'll get back to you later," he muttered and walked to his room. The entire mess required some drawing out.

-------------------------------------

Takuya flashed a look at the obviously sleeping form of Hideki before he turned off the TV and put away the video game equipment. Another glance in Hideki's direction.

_Can't make any risks_, Takuya thought with a grin. As quietly as possible, he tiptoed towards the hall that lead to the bedrooms, opening two or three doors before he found Hideki's. Once he was inside, he chuckled, "Nothing unusual. Yet. But guys like him _always_ have something on them! Just gotta look in the right place..."

He proceeded to search through Hideki's drawers, under the bed, in the closet, and check any crevice or wall for a switch. There was nothing Takuya could find. Even stomping on the floor didn't help. Tapping on the walls was no better. _Damn,_ he thought, _for a pervert, this guy's as clean as...well, nothing's really clean when you think about it. So he must not be, either! Even _I_ have a picture of Izumi in my room!_ Even more determined than before, Takuya began his search again.

It was futile, he soon realized. Takuya found nothing. No numbers, no pictures, no secret diary. "Man, this stinks," he groaned, falling back on Hideki's bed. He had nothing.

There was a sound of metal clashing against each other by Takuya's ear. Curiously, he sat up and looked beneath him. _Blanket._ He pushed the blanket aside. There was a pillow. _Pillow_. Takuya pushed the pillow away.

Nothing.

Growling, Takuya picked up the pillow and threw it across the room. There was the clinking sound again. He paused, a look of pure confusion on his face. It hit him as he slammed a fist on his open palm. "Of course!" he said in an excited whisper. He scrambled off the bed and ran towards the pillow, yanking the cloth off and spilling out a chain with three tiny silver keys.

He was stuck with keys. Now he just had to find the lock.

_This gets better and better_, Takuya thought with a grin. He looked around the room, searching for possible places that Hideki would put any items he wanted to keep out of prying eyes, or in this case...Takuya Kanbara.

Wanting to laugh, Takuya narrated, _And the _great_ snoop Takuya Kanbara uncovers another clue-wait...I sound like I'm in 'Blue's Clues.' Way to go, Tacky_. He shook his head and opened the closet again. There was a small desk in the middle of it, with clothes hanging from hangers above it. The desk had three drawers. Three drawers with three locks. _Three locks for three keys_. Takuya chuckled as he began trying the keys, opening the first drawer without any trouble.

His eyes widened.

Hideki was definitely obsessed. A notebook, pictures, a mess of things. Takuya shook his head and picked up the notebook, nearly gagging at the first date. _ELEVEN YEARS AGO? Oh, wait...she ignored him then. Y-you mean...up until five years ago...she didn't even so much as _acknowledge_ his existence?_ Takuya was amazed. Rai definitely had a stubborn streak. He flipped through a few more pages before sorting through some more of the drawer contents.

Pictures. Pictures of the two together, pictures of just Rai, pictures of her backpack. _A pencil case?_ Takuya shook his head. There was a small, sad smile on his face. "He really _does_ love her," he muttered in disbelief, shutting the drawer after replacing all contents. He moved to the second drawer, opening it succesfully with the next key.

Takuya had a theory that the keys were the same size and one could fit any of the locks, but decided it probably wouldn't be the best idea. He opened the second drawer.

Nothing.

Sucking in a breath, Takuya shut the drawer and opened the next, almost dying from laughter. There, he found items a typical Hideki would have. Pictures of other girls, another notebook which he discovered to have pictures and details from many girls...Takuya assumed from the faded writing, however, that it was from before Hideki met Rai.

He shut the drawer and was about to turn away when he realized there was something bothering him. _The second drawer had nothing, and the other two did. That's kind of weird_, Takuya realized. Curiously, he opened the second drawer again and peeked further into it.

There was nothing in there.

Out of frustration, Takuya swore and placed a hand in the drawer, feeling around inside of it.

He found _exactly_ what he was looking for. Compared to the grainy sides of the wood, the bottom of the drawer had a smooth filmy feeling to it. _There's a picture or something here!_ Grinning madly, Takuya clawed at the paper, managing to lift it up without harming it. Eagerly, he took a look at it.

Hideki would be _sure_ to run back to Rai once Takuya was through with him.

-------------------------------------

The morning was beautiful to Kako. A brilliant orange sunrise that shimmered was cast out onto the sky, decorated with a few purple hues on the sky. Eventually, she watched it fade into a soft yellow and into the blue, cloudless sky it was when everyone else woke up. She doubted that Kouji slept; all night, she could hear typing. Then again, it wasn't as if she slept.

Shrugging, Kako walked inside, locking eyes with Kouji immediately. He sat at the table, taking a bite of his food before he pushed it away and focused on her. It was slightly uncomfortable at first, but it made Kako ponder what was on his mind. _Typing. Why was he typing? He looks-_

Kouji's voice startled her. It was soft, almost unlike him for that instant. "How long have you been awake? You look like you didn't sleep," he told her. Dark eyes that swirled with mystery...that was what Kako saw. It irked her that she couldn't see anything more. Shrouded with mystery, Kouji was unpredictable.

She just shrugged and looked away. There wasn't much to say about it. With a soft exhale, Kako walked towards the window. She leaned on the windowsill and asked, "Would you like to go out to the beach with me?" She had no idea why she was asking, but for some reason, Kako felt compelled it. Smiling softly, she watched as the sky took its dull light blue color and pushed away all clouds. "It's a beautiful day to go out."

For a few minutes, they were silent. Kouji turned back to his food as Satomi walked in. "Kako, would you like anything to eat?" she asked the girl with a kind smile. Smiling politely in return, Kako shook her head. The lady's business was short. She collected Kouji's plate once he finished, placed it in the sink, quickly did the dishes, and headed towards the door. "I'm going shopping. Tell your father, would you, Kouji?" said Mrs. Minamoto. A few seconds later and she was out the door.

_A beautiful day to go out...?_ Kouji turned to Kako whose eyes were glued outside the window. He stood up and his heart skipped a beat. Shaken, he swallowed. There was only one chance. "I..." he started, "I'd..."

"Kouji...where did Satomi go?" Kousei walked into the kitchen looking tired. He yawned. Then turning to Kouji, he waited for an answer with an expectant look on his face.

Kouji stood there in silence, eyes glued to Kako. He couldn't move. With a simple question, she had him immobilized. It took a while for him to shake his head and tell his father, "She went shopping." All the while, Kouji didn't move his eyes from Kako.

"Oh. That's too bad. I hoped we could sit down and talk...We'll do that tonight if that's alright." He looked at Kako and smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry...it's just-"

Kako shook her head. "Don't apologize. It's fine," she replied. Under her breath, she muttered, "It's Kouichi's fault anyway."

Suddenly surprised, Kouji took a step back. It made no sense. She cared. She cared about their family. _But why? It makes no sense_, Kouji thought. "Kako," he called out.

It was Kako's turn to be surprised. She looked at Kouji with slightly widened eyes.

"I think I'll take up your offer...on the walk," he told her, slipping on his shoes and yanking his jacket off a hanger from the closet. _I have a few questions_, he thought to himself. _And you'll be answering them_.

Smiling triumphantly, Kako nodded, quickly walking over and slipping on her own shoes. "Thanks," she whispered to him as they walked outside.

He was even more confused than before.

-------------------------------------

The sand was comforting. Looking at it reminded Kouji of his life. _All those small things that just collected up. I wonder if that's how the sand feels_. He averted his gaze to Kako, his eyes boring into her with an intense look of interest. "Hey...Kako, why do you-"

Kako looked up at him, smiling sweetly. She interrupted him, "First, I have a favor to ask." Mischief sparkled in her brown eyes.

_Are they brown?_ Kouji suddenly wondered. He squinted to get a better look. There was black, there was brown--he couldn't be sure. The sun was shining down on them brightly. Too bright. "What is it?" he inquired, shielding his eyes from the sun.

In one fluid movement, Kako grabbed his hands in her own and brought them up between them. "_Please_ will you surf? I _really_ want to see you surf!" she begged him.

Kouji's eyes slipped shut. _Of course_, he thought bitterly. _I should have guessed. You take Kouichi away, and she starts asking the next closest person to do dangerous tricks. If I drown...no, I'll write my will first_. With an exasperated sigh, Kouji asked, "Is _that_ the whole purpose of this walk?" In truth, he was more than slightly annoyed.

Kako dropped her hands to her sides and looked down at her shoes. In a small voice, she answered, "Maybe."

"Kako," he growled, "if that's it, I'm going back inside!" He had better things to do. He didn't need to be a source of amusement for her.

He stopped when she grabbed his right arm. "W-wait!" yelled Kako. "You can't go back! And if you do, Piximon will _kill_ me!" She looked up at him with desperate eyes.

It made sense. Piximon, him...it wasn't amusement she was looking for. It was time away from Piximon. He submitted. "Fine," Kouji mumbled. "Just no surfing."

Kako laughed, "That's fine. Hey, you wanna check my grandpa's inn? It's awesome!"

"No thanks."

She got him interested anyway. "He's got a new bandana style out," Kako sang, hands slipping down to his. She gave his hand a slight yank. Kouji followed without a word. Laughing, Kako let go of his hand and ran ahead.

_New bandana style...Hawaiian? This better be good_. He made a silent note to himself to tell her off to Piximon if it wasn't.

The inn wasn't too far from the beach. In fact, it was just a half mile from the house his parents were renting. Kouji was amazed with it. _Aizawa's crazy_, he decided as he walked inside. He found Kako at the counter, chatting rather animatedly with the front clerk whom Kouji guessed to be slightly older. Eyes narrowing in suspicion, he walked up and pushed Kako aside. _Can't let anything go wrong_. "Who are you?" he questioned the clerk.

The boy at the desk blinked at Kouji out of surprise. "Actually," he commented, "it's more of the question of who _you_ are."

"Kouji Minamoto. Now state your business, buddy!" Kouji stopped when he noticed the dark aura behind him. Nervously, he turned around and saluted while he lied, "I'm...replacing Piximon for the moment?" It would have been a plausible lie if there hadn't been another reason in the matter. And at the moment, Kouji wished the reason was nonexistent.

But Kako managed to swallow her anger, concentrating it all on stepping on Kouji's foot, which worked twice. She looked back at the boy and sighed. "Sorry. Kouji's an idiot at times."

There was a chuckle. Kouji could have sworn it was a sneer as the boy laughed, "Ah, so _he's_ the infamous bandana boy Aizawa talks about." He motioned to the two. "Come over here. Mr. Aizawa's busy at the moment, but you can still look at the new designs we've gotten."

The two followed the boy into a seperate room filled with shelves that were covered with bandanas. "I still have yet to learn his name," Kouji muttered.

"Ichiro, what are y--woah, it's Kako!" someone commented from the front.

Kako turned around, a smile on her face. She waved, but said nothing in greeting. His head was woozy from all the designs, facts and names that were swarming around. "Y-you!" he snapped, pointing at Ichiro, who was adjusting an orange bandana on its shelf. "Uhh...damn it, I'm never taking Piximon's job again," he muttered.

Rolling her eyes, Kako pointed to Ichiro. "Kouji, meet Ichiro Egawa. I suppose you couldn't call him the brightest of all Hideki's friends, but he's definitely brighter than Hideki," she introduced the two.

Brushing his blond hair back, Ichiro offered a hand. "And that," he told Kouji when the bandana boy shook his hand, "would be my little brother Ryuusei." In a quieter voice, Ichiro added when neither Kako or Ryuusei were listening, "He's the one you _really_ ought to worry about. Keep 'em far away from Kako. He harbors a...six? Seven year old crush or so." Ichiro squeezed Kouji's hand tightly before releasing it and turning to Kako. "Anyway, if you guys want to, you can wait here or at the front if you want to talk to him," he told them.

Kako looked to Kouji for a confirmation. Waving a dismissive hand, Kouji muttered, "The front. I'm getting dizzy. It's too bright."

Ryuusei made his first remark that resulted in Kouji's buildup of dislike for him. "What?" the boy asked, blue eyes dancing with amusement, "Did Japan turn into a dump?"

Noticing the intense glare from Kouji that Ryuusei was obviously ignoring, Kako whacked her old friend's shoulder. "Ryu," she hissed. Turning to Kouji, she asked, "Would you like to wait for my grandpa or walk again?"

"I don't know. What do you want to do?" Kouji returned, folding his arms.

There it was, what she had expected. Kouji's full out stubborn attitude. Letting out a forced laugh, she turned to Ryuusei. "Hey, why don't you show me some of your surfing tricks?" Kako suggested, clapping her hands together. _Please accept, please accept_...

His sea green eyes sparkled. "Well, I don't know..." Ryuusei murmured, scratching the back of his head.

Kako nearly squealed. Throwing her arms around him, she yelled, "Thank you!" Finally, she could talk to Kouji.

_Kouichi's asleep or I'd call him_, Kouji thought in disgust as Kako practically skipped after Ryuusei. HIs hand brushed against his cellphone in his pocket. It was eight in the morning. He'd have to wait at _least_ four more hours if Kouichi was going to wake up early. Five if he wanted to catch his twin for sure.

"Kouji, are you coming? Hurry up!" Kako called out to him, peeking her head in the door.

He was about to retort when he could the look on Kako's face. A smirk appeared on his own. _Clever,_ Kouji realized. _She's smart_.

-------------------------------------

The waves crashed down, sending surfers back to the beach and easing others into the water. Kako's eyes were glued onto Kouji, however. "What were you doing last night?" she asked immediately as soon as Ryuusei left them to show off.

Kouji let out a laugh. "Shouldn't I be asking the questions?" the bandana boy mused aloud. He lay back on the sand and let the cool morning sun shine down on him. "First tell me why you care so much for our family."

He felt her place a hand on his chest as she leaned over him, an annoyed look on her face. "Kouji," Kako snapped, "I'm serious. What were you doing last night?" The annoyed look had been replaced by one of such solemnity that made Kouji want to laugh.

Resisting, he shut his eyes and sighed. After a while of silence, he opened them and pulled her towards him, his main reason being that he didn't want Ryuusei to interfere in her relationship with Kouichi in any way. Looking her in the eye, Kouji told her softly, "Fine. But you have to answer my questions, too." When she nodded, Kouji said, "I've got a few stories to write, a few facts to connect, here and there. Small jobs, favors...that stuff." It was a lie, and he was sure she knew. She had been onto him yesterday night, after all.

Kako was indeed catching on quickly. _Liar,_ she thought disgustedly, trying to pull away. Defeatedly, she sighed and held her position so as to not get too close. _Honestly, he's worse than Piximon_. Kako imagined what his reaction would be if she told him that before she answered, "Because you two idiot twins are giving your family a hell of a lot of trouble. Would you _let go of me_?" She was getting exasperated.

He obliged. "Your turn."

After a while of silence and actually watching Ryuusei as he fell into the waves, Kako asked, "So what's up with your family?"

"A few things. I'm not obliged to answer that, sorry Kako," Kouji returned in a grave voice. He sat up and smiled. "But I'll let you ask another question in place of it," the boy offered.

Kako tilted her head to the side. "Um...why...are you acting worse than Piximon?" It was an honest question, and she hadn't expected him to burst into full out laughter. Embarrassed, Kako brought her knees up and scooted away from Kouji as if to avoid him.

Still laughing, Kouji grabbed her arm. Eventually, he managed to let the laughter subside. "N-no, wait," he told her. "So..." There was an impish grin on his face. "I'm worse than Piximon, am I?" he asked her, pulling her closer.

"Considering you're practically making out with me at the moment, yeah, sure," Kako replied breezily.

Kouji made a face. "Give me a break," he snapped. "I'm not _that_ bad. Besides," added the bandana boy as his expression turned grim, "I'm not letting that dork get in between you and Kouichi!"

"AHA! See! You're _worse_ than Piximon! Not only do you treat me like a child and think that I can't withstand Ryu's constant flirting, but you think that you can't trust me with another guy! AND YOU'RE PRACTICALLY FLIRTING WITH ME YOURSELF! Not really, of course," Kako added hastily, "the last part, I mean."

Rolling his eyes, Kouji gazed at the sky. "Mmmhmm..." He lay back and shut his eyes again. "My turn. What do you know or remember about your father?" asked Kouji, fingers intertwining behind his head.

It was as he expected. Silence. Kako lay down beside him and sighed, "I really don't know." The confession didn't startle him much. "I...I remember he had glasses. And he was really nice to me. There was a time...oh, I don't know. You know when you visualize someone you don't know?" Kouji nodded and she continued, "I imagined him as an older version of Hideki, better personality, not a stupid, goddamn drunk, damn idiot, but nice and caring, making a few perverted jokes I guess. I...I also found out from something...I don't know, maybe it's just a dream, but he wasn't really strong. He was physically weak, frail, but smart. He was also sick often..." Her eyes slipped shut.

Kouji turned to his side to get a better look at her expression. "Yeah...?"

She giggled slightly. "I...I also remember just the slightest thing he did would make me laugh. For some reason, I remember a pot of spaghetti on his head..." she trailed off again and burst out into laughter.

Smiling, Kouji allowed his back to meet the sand. The sun beating down on him, the warm sand under him, the sound of the waves...it all had such a calming effect on him.

"H-hey...Kako...were you paying attention to me at all?"

Kouji's world came crashing to a stop as he glared up at the newly arrived (and wet) Ryu. With a yelp, Kako sat up, eyes open. "Umm...uh...sorry, Ryuusei," she blurted, looking away and rubbing the back of her neck. "The sun felt kinda warm...and I didn't get much sleep..."

"Why should you apologize?" Kouji snapped. He rose to his feet, eyes glittering.

For the first time, Ryu met his eyes. The message was sent in a heartbeat. Kouji looked down at Kako. "We better get going, don't you think? You didn't eat either," he reminded her.

Kako pouted. Looking up at Kouji, she insisted, "I'm not hungry!" Her stomach gave her away with a growl. Blushing madly, Kako stood up and brushed the sand off of her. "That never happened," she muttered to Kouji, turning away from both boys.

Kouji was about to drag her off when Ryu made his suggestion. The war was on from the second the words left his lips. "Kako, there's a cheap restaurant if you guys want to eat. My treat," he told her, beaming at her and taking the girl's hand.

Sending Kouji an uncomfortable glance, Kako replied with an uneasy laugh, "Sure...why not...? Right, Kouji?"

Sick from the nauseating smell of the ocean that surrounded Ryuusei, Kouji shook his head. "I've...got my work. I'll send Piximon, though. At least _he_ won't bug you about Kouichi," he told her. The sly smile he had been hiding worked onto his lips. He left before either had a chance to see it.

Stiffening, Kako looked at Ryuusei uncomfortably. While she wasn't annoyed by her old friend's presence, she was a tad bit frightened without Kouji's presence beside her. _This is NOT good_, she realized. Putting on a smile when Ryu looked at her, she said, "Sure...let's go..."

"Okay. I've got to go change first. Meet up with you at the inn?" Ryu suggested.

"Right...at the inn." _Rai better be up!_

-------------------------------------

Rai rolled over in bed with a groan. Her hand reached for her alarm clock, trying to shut it off. No matter how many times she pressed the snooze button, the ringing wouldn't go away. "Damn it," she swore, rolling onto her back and pushing the covers off. It was still dark; her eyes were taking their time to adjust in the given conditions. Her ears located the sound right away. Annoyed, Rai traversed halfway across her room, picked the phone off the small, round table and answered in a rude voice, "Hello?" _The only idiots insane to call at this time are Marise and Hideki. And I guess some other people if they're desperate enough_.

"RAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIII!"

_Wait, insanity runs in the family. How could I leave Kako out?_ Rai smiled at the thought and shook her head when she found herself drooping. "Thanks for waking me up at..." she glanced at the clock and continued, "Two fourty-five in the morning! I've always wanted this type of wake up call."

"Oh...sorry," Kako murmured in apology.

She let out a tired laugh. "It's okay, Kako. Just...don't blame me if I start to snooze. How's Hawaii? Did you talk to your grandfather?" asked Rai.

Kako mumbled something incoherent before clearing her throat. To Rai, she said, "No...I talked to Ichiro and Ryuusei. Say, Rai...when you want to get a boy to take a hint, that hint being that you aren't really interested...what do you do?"

_Ah...trouble I sense_. Rai smirked and replied, "Turn them down."

Silence. "Um..._hint_."

"You flat out turn them down, Kako. Boys don't usually take hints. No offense to your dear Kouichi-" She braced herself for the interruption that came.

Kako's reaction was as she expected. "WE AREN'T GOING OUT! ...yet." The last word was whispered.

Rai laughed. "You know," she commented, "I think he's getting a bit restless. Duskmon's showed up at my place overnight at _least_ five times since you've been gone. He pops in and out...then back in, then back out. So, how's twin two?"

"KOUJI DESERTED ME!"

"You make it sound like he dumped you," Rai told her.

There was a snort on the other end of the line. Kako was annoyed, Rai realized. Before Kako could say anything, she told the girl, "Just to let you know, I won't be able to catch up with your talk if you go on a speed rage. Whatever's going on, Kako, just tell him about Kouichi and then see if he asks if you're dating Kouichi. If not, just say you're busy and avoid him. Just refuse him, okay? I'm going back to sleep. I think I hear Duskmon grumbling again. Good niiiight..." Rai barely heard a word of protest before she hung up and plopped back down on her bed. "Goodness sakes, Duskmon, just go to sleep!" she snapped.

Duskmon sulked into the room from the shadows. "I don't want to," he mumbled huffily. "There is no point to sleeping."

"Liar. Even digimon sleep. If you aren't going to sleep, at least help Junpei or Tomoki. Or wake Kouichi up and force him to train," Rai returned, pulling the covers over her and bringing them up to her neck. "Good night."

Silently, Duskmon watched as Rai fell into a deep slumber. If there was anything he wanted to do, it was to go to Hawaii. "And yet will he listen to my idea?" the digimon muttered silently to himself. _I doubt it. But...maybe_...

A grim smile appeared on Duskmon's features. There was a slight chance. But it was only a slight chance. Either way it was worth a try.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

The chapter title makes more sense towards the end I guess. Even I don't get it. I'm trying to cover more in the chapters. And if you want to know what I think, it's that everyone's either got no time on their hands or my stories aren't appealing. Personally, I think it's both. Plus, come on--would you read a story that updating twice a week that was over 50 chapters? Even if it's good, I find it hard to keep up myself. That happened to me once. I gave up. It finished at around 50, 60 chapters. I read around 40. It was past the point, too ahead and just way too fast updating. I found out it finished a while ago, but I didn't want to read it. Mainly because I lost interest in the fandom.

I don't blame you. I'm going to keep writing. I figured that receiving reviews generally don't matter because everyone has a different taste. It's hard to write for a majority's taste. In fact, all the season two fics I put up (on a different account) are dying. It's quite strange, but I've gotten this sudden obsession with writing Koushirou fics.

I'll keep writing in hopes that you keep reading because I love just writing. You could say that you'd never stop reading, but that isn't true. It's happened with other readers, and I'm not sure if I can say the same about you, but I can't say otherwise. That's the best part about it--I don't know you. I can't blame you because I don't know you and even if I did I couldn't. It's a little story in itself. Right now I'd just like you to know that I very much enjoy your reviews. Friends away from friends. I can talk to you guys about pretty much anything. Do I sound depressed? I'm actually not. I'm just thinking a lot lately, I guess. So thank you, and sorry for the stupidly long A/N, if you even read this. Ultimately, I must thank the lifeblood of my reviews-

**Winter's Light, PrincessYami, GemmaniGirl**

Review or PM or Flame, please. I take all.


	21. Putting It To The Test

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Putting It To The Test

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Kako smoothed her hair back as loose strands flew in her eyes. There was a gentle wind blowing in their direction, and she could practically feel the sand accumulate under her feet with each step. "So, Ryu, how's life been?" she asked. Her gaze was set before her and although Kako seemed like she was concentrating on the path in front of her, she was spacing out.

There was a slight chuckle that came from Ryuusei. He turned to Kako, a warm smile on his face. "Well, kind of boring," he admitted, "but the waves are great company."

"Isn't it cold?"

He laughed the comment away. "Yeah, it was at first. But it's great."

The girl shifted uneasily as they approached the wooden steps of the restaurant. Cautiously watching the steps below her, she ascended up to the front door, Ryu right behind her. She reached for the handle and, almost instantly, a feeling of foreboding ran through her. "No," Kako whispered under her breath, gasping as she fell back into Ryu. She didn't bother to wait. The next instant, she pushed Ryuusei aside and ran off, no word of explanation to offer.

It was startling for even Kako, but it occurred to her that the way Kouji's brain functioned was in no way similar to that of Kouichi's or any other boy's for that matter. The only reason he would want to get rid of her would be to do something he _knew_ she was on to. Something that was important to him, something he had to keep from her. _And Ryu was the _perfect_ excuse, too_, Kako thought bitterly. It annoyed her greatly that she had been deceived.

It was only the start of something much larger.

-------------------------------------

_She's on to me_, Kouji thought, gently opening the front door and walking inside. He stopped almost immediately. Several things were wrong with the picture. A messy kitchen, a bubbling pot, the stove was on...laughter was coming from the living room. There had been a car out in the driveway, but Kouji hadn't been sure if it meant anything. Adult laughter, not held back chuckling but full out laughter, confirmed that it really did mean something. Kouji felt himself grow tense.

"Kouji's doing a wonderful job at school. I must say, I haven't been there for most of the school year but the feedback I received from the teachers certainly told me he's one of those brilliant minds."

Shock ran through Kouji's veins. _That voice_. He shook his head and was about to go straight to his room through the exit of the kitchen that wasn't as long to cross, but it seemed the visitor knew he was here.

There was a slight chuckle. "Kouji," said the cheerful voice of Mr. Aizawa, "why don't you come here?"

He did so grudgingly. Kouji slouched and looked away from all three adults.

It was this constant appraisal that sickened him. He wasn't sure if it was flowery talk or true praise, and he didn't care. He could be sure that Mr. Aizawa definitely wanted to be on good terms with his family. _But what if he's batting for the other team...?_ A frustrated sigh escaped his lips before Kouji had a chance to stop himself.

Self-censorship. That was his rule. Even when he had gone through Takuya's bet, he had censored every word before it came out of his mouth. Before he had aimed for smiles. Now he aimed for saving the world.

Yet now he had broken it. Quickly, Kouji covered it up by wiping a hand across his forehead. "Sorry," he murmured. Now he yawned and rolled his shoulders back. "Well...I've had a tiring day...I'm going to sleep!" announced the bandana boy, making a start for his room.

"But Kouji, it's only been..." Mr. Minamoto looked at the clock and continued, "two hours since you woke up!"

"_Three_," the younger Minamoto corrected pointedly. He shook his head. "It doesn't matter. I-"

Satomi spoke up this time. "But Kouji-"

Realizing he was running out of options, Kouji ran to the kitchen and turned off the stove. From there, he yelled, "You left the stove on!" He carefully left out the word, 'Mom' out of awkwardness. After spending months with his actual mother, calling Satomi 'mother' was becoming a little unsettling.

Kouji took his time, attempting to listen in on the murmurs of the adults. He kept his motions slow, although it was dragging even for himself. First turning off the stove, then removing the pot and placing it on another part of the stove that hadn't been heated, cleaning up the spills, cleaning up the rest of the kitchen. It took up a good ten minutes altogether. Then the dragging steps back to his parents and Mr. Aizawa.

It felt all too quick.

Kousei motioned to the empty space on the armchair adjacent to the couch he sat on. "Kouji, why don't you sit?" Across from his father, Kouji found Mr. Aizawa.

_If that guy wasn't Kako's gramps...and even so, he's still weird_. The thought made him want to chuckle. _But so is her dad. Hey, it evens out. No wonder their family is a made up of a bunch of wacko-Kouichi'll kill me if he ever figures out I thought that. But he won't_. Kouji shook his head, partly to clear it, partly to refuse.

There was an uncomfortable silence in which his parents exchanged glances with emotions Kouji wasn't able to read.

"SIT. DOWN. MINAMOTO."

Wincing at the sound of the door opening, Kouji looked behind his shoulder. _I thought I got rid of her_, he thought with great disappointment. Scowling, Kouji said, "I thought you were off romancing with what's-his-name?" His foul mood was now evident. It didn't help that Piximon chose that moment to roll into the room, looking like an innocent stuffed animal.

From the doorway, Kako let out a yell. She ran forward and scooped Piximon off the floor and plopped down beside her grandfather. "Ichiro said you were at a meeting!" she told him in an accusing voice. Kako had a glare directed at him.

"I was!" insisted Mr. Aizawa, returning an indignant glare in the direction of his granddaughter.

Kako glared back for a while before throwing her hands up in the air and leaning back against the couch. "Boys," she muttered, "I've had to live with them all my life. I hate how true that is." There was a stifle of a giggle from Satomi.

A glance was transferred from Kouji to his father to Mr. Aizawa who snorted, "Your mother wasn't so normal herself."

It happened quickly. Furiously, Kako stood up. She looked slightly insulted. Yelling, "I never said she was! She was strangely cool, okay?" Kako stormed outside, slamming the door behind her.

Kouji found it odd that the man's face carried a serene smile, despite the fact that his granddaughter was probably plotting ways to end his old life. With a chuckle, Aizawa picked himself up. "Well, Kousei," he said at last, "from that demonstration, I have proved she isn't as angelic as you claim. Thank you for taking care of her during her visit on the island. Any trouble she gives and you can send her to me."

_Adults_, Kouji thought, rolling his eyes. He watched his father and principal shake hands firmly, say a few words, and then found Mr. Aizawa before him a split second later.

But it wasn't Aizawa.

Kouji's eyes widened in confusion as a transparent form of Mr. Aizawa smiled down at him. "Actually, Kouji," it told him, "despite my great dislike for Marise, I'm only batting for one team. And that team is actually obvious." And then it was gone.

Shocked into silence, Kouji stood there unmoving. When at last he could breath and move normally again, his eyes followed Mr. Aizawa out the door. He looked at his parents. Kouji found himself muttering, "That was unexpected." He slumped down in the armchair and shut his eyes.

Satomi and Kousei exchanged uneasy glances before they sat back down on the couch. Almost immediately, Satomi stood up and excused herself. "I should go check the kitchen. I left it in a mess," she murmured shortly before running into the kitchen.

There was a grave expression on Kousei's face. "Kouji, you understand why we called you here, do you not?"

In the back of his mind, Kouji thought, _This sounds like some military draft_. Aloud, he said nothing.

With great difficulty, Kousei continued, "You know it's hard for us to separate you and your brother now that you know the other exists. And I'm positive y-..._Tomoko_..." He placed a great emphasis on his ex-wife's name. "I'm positive that _Tomoko_ would want to see you more often, too. Unfortunately my job calls for my stay in Hawaii to take a while longer, so..."

Kouji realized that his father had broken off into stuttering incoherent sentences. The boy stood up. "So basically you want me to move in with you?" he asked.

Kousei shook his head. He opened and closed his mouth several times before he managed to say, "It's the opposite. I want you to move in with...your mother." The last words were strained and sounded completely forced.

It felt as if he had been tackled by two football players from the side, shoulders grazed. Kouji fell back on the couch and began to contemplate the facts. Nothing added up. "But...you said something about Satomi being pregnant!" he suddenly found himself blurting.

There was a loud crash in the kitchen and Kouji watched his father lurch forward out of surprise. _Maybe I should have kept that bit to myself...?_ He shook his head and asked, "What's that about then?"

"We didn't..." Kousei looked flustered. "Kouji, I've only called you twice...a...Satomi...pregnant..?" Swallowing, he stood up and shook his head, a hand feeling his forehead for a fever.

_Twice_? Kouji shook his head again, suddenly confused. Someone had been playing his father on the phone. It was a clever ruse, but one could easily foil. Eyes cold, he stood up and walked out of the house without a word. Whatever was happening, he was going to get to the bottom of it.

-------------------------------------

Kako leaned against the wall beside the door, smiling to herself as it opened. "Thanks, Gramps," she murmured, smiling up at her grandfather.

Mr. Aizawa nodded and placed a hand on her head. Quietly, he ruffled her hair and stood there, gazing at the street. When he found Kako looking up at him with an expectant look in her eyes, the old man sighed, "It was a beautiful sunrise."

The straining and longing in his eyes was obvious to Kako. She removed his hand from her head and yanked on it. "Tell me," she commanded, a determined look in her eyes.

'_Tell me_,' she had said. Smiling, Taishi Aizawa shook his head. _So like Harumi_, he thought sadly, a half smile on his face. "You will learn," he told her in a soft voice, "in time. It is not my place to tell you, Kako." He inclined his head in her direction before walking to his car.

Kako nodded back out of politeness. The car sped off and she pressed her ear against the door to eavesdrop. There was a crash, then silence. Murmurs, footsteps-_Footsteps!_ Kako yelled at herself mentally, trying to pry herself away from the door. Before she could, the door opened and she fell forward against the solid form of Kouji. With a muffled, "Oof," Kako stood up straight and waved casually to Kouji. "Hey...eh...don't look at me like that," she suddenly said, taking several steps back.

Practically slamming the door shut behind him, Kouji grabbed a hold of Kako's arm and dragged her off. "I need to talk to you," he told her in a low voice. "And if anyone starts bugging me, I can't guarantee their safety. If Surfer boy wants to talk to you, he can't, and you better be the one to warn him."

Surprised, Kako nodded silently. "You could just wear a sign," she offered, lagging behind. That resulted in her literally being dragged by Kouji.

"After this, you _will_ call Kouichi."

She shrugged. Attempting to release her hand and now walking in pace with Kouji, Kako returned, "He's your brother." Mentally she added, _Why can't you call him?_ She wondered exactly what had happened to the bandana boy.

"...And you will tell him to-" Kouji's voice dropped into a low murmur as he told her the next part.

Nearly screaming in frustration, Kako yanked her hand away and grabbed Kouji's wrist. "What are you _thinking_?" she hissed, eyes focused on him in a furious glare. "Do you think that he could actually do that?" Kako was about to continue into a lengthy rant when Kouji placed a hand over her mouth. It wasn't a sudden, annoyed action but rather the opposite; Kako saw it coming, but it was completely unlike Kouji that she couldn't stop it.

Gently, Kouji covered her mouth and murmured, "It needs to be done, believe me. You may think I'm controlling everyone's fate, but I'm not. I promise. I'm just trying to help them out. And if I do in any way screw things up..." He stopped and removed his hand.

"YES?"

He could tell she was angry. Releasing his other hand and raising it, Kouji swore, "I'll let you kick me if Kouichi gets hurt in the process." He then added, "But first I'm going to tell him you completely lack faith in his abilities. Come on, he's Kouichi. He's gone through more martial arts styles than you and I put together. Besides, it's _Duskmon_ we're talking about. Worst case, Duskmon can take over for them and Kouichi can rest for the remainder of the week. Of course Mom wi-" Again, Kouji stopped.

Kako wasn't paying attention to him. Her eyes were focused on another. Unfortunately, Kouji saw why.

"A teacher who leaves his students to come to Hawaii," Kako murmured.

Kouji's eyes narrowed on the figure. "A principal who follows."

The two exchanged glances. Smiling, Kako whispered, "You better explain _everything_ to me if you don't want to get kicked."

Mentally, Kouji winced. _I knew I should have kept my mouth shut about the kicking part_.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi sat awake in his bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. Training, coming home to find he would be alone in the house for the rest of the week (his mother was helping a friend), calling practically everyone and finding they were busy doing one thing or another...

Kouichi looked at the time and let out an impatient sigh. He had been losing a lot of sleep lately, worrying about his brother and Kako. _It's only four thirty_.

"You should get some sleep," said a gruff voice.

In response the boy let out a soft sigh, shutting his eyes. "I can't," was his reply.

Perhaps it was because he was unable to anticipate what was happening with them. His father, Kouji...Hawaii...Kako...he was worried in every single way. And it was obvious. Eating the eggs raw, skipping dinner, nearly chopping off his finger while making lunch...the signs just betrayed him. Not only that, but he had nearly been run over by five cars, set two books on fire, and almost hit himself when attempting to lunge for Marise while sparring. As a result, even his digivice was taken away, and he had neither sword nor D-Tector.

Duskmon looked at his fading form. Practically all of him was visible and there were faint traces of signs where he was beginning to fade from the physical portion of the real world. He snorted, "Don't deny it, boy. You want to go visit her." He purposely summoned a shadow to veil his face from Kouichi's view. The smirk on his face was all too obvious. So it would look like he was intentionally hiding, Duskmon moved his hands up to warp the shadow.

The boy was quiet. It didn't take a genius to realize he was contemplating his choices. Ms. Kimura was gone for the while. Due to his lack of concentration, Kouichi's training was limited to meditation to get back his focus. But the way Duskmon phrased it was starting to get to Kouichi. "Does...does it really seem like I just care about Kako?" he asked softly. It was a difficult subject for him, and Duskmon knew it.

"Yes," Duskmon lied fluently. It wasn't hard. After realizing everyone around you was probably lying to you, it wasn't long until you started lying to them. It was another language by itself almost. He decided to take it another step further. Turning around and dropping the shadow, Duskmon continued, "You don't even give a thought to anyone else." He waited for a rebuttal.

Kouichi chose to stay silent. He sat up in bed, pushing the covers off. No more words were volunteered and Duskmon faced Kouichi once more, a look of genuine annoyance on his face. "Well?" he asked, impatient for an answer.

Duskmon still received no answer from the boy. Now standing up, Kouichi made his way to the bathroom. Finally, he whispered in a barely audible voice, "Training. I'm going to train right now."

His first response was irritation, but Duskmon soon realized where Kouichi was going with his supposed, 'Training.' Grinning, Duskmon disappeared into the shadows, deciding to meet the boy at the bookshop.

His final wish _would_ be seen to.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi arrived in front of the bookstore at around five twenty-eight. The sky was still a dark, ominous blue, but there were breaks in the scarce clouds that revealed a lighter sky pushing through. Not much to his amazement, the bookstore was open. Surprises after realizing Mr. Saito was Marise had seemed more expected than surprising.

Sitting down behind the counter, Marise was engaged in reading a novel, one, Kouichi guessed, that he had taken from the shelves and stacked on the counter in a neat pile. "Kouichi," the man acknowledged Kouichi's presence without ever looking up. Kouichi, too tired to jump out of surprise, nodded in return.

"The room is open. But you realize this is dangerous. I can only let you go if you are completely focused," Marise told him.

The boy nodded.

Again, Marise spoke up before Kouichi could move a muscle an inch. He told the boy, "Taishi has informed me that she hasn't looked at it yet." When Kouichi said nothing, Marise looked up from his book, pushing his glasses up with a finger. "Your principal, Kouichi," Marise told him.

Blinking somewhat blankly, Kouichi nodded. He was about to make his way to the room again when something stopped him. "Sir, why-" Suddenly, Kouichi shook his head for no reason at all. "Never mind," he mumbled, feeling the strength escaping him as he took every step towards the room. Feeling weaker than the moment he woke up, Kouichi shut the door behind him.

The room spun as soon as he made a reach for the lights. Dizzily, Kouichi fell to the ground, his blank gaze focused on the ground. He shut his eyes and let out a soft sigh. _I need to stand up_, he realized.

"No. Keep down. Sleep, Kouichi," a soft voice instructed.

A feeling as if a thousand feathers were around him suddenly forced Kouichi to open his eyes. He was lying down in a field of grass, staring up at the sky. _No, wake up!_ He tried to force himself up, biting back the pain and hurt it caused. Desperately fighting back tears, Kouichi lay motionless on the ground, involuntarily reaching beside him.

"Kouichi..."

_This can't be_, Kouichi thought, trying to control himself. Something else was moving him, taking this girl who looked so much like Kako into his arms. _This can't be,_ he repeated to himself. _Kouichi, wake up_. It was a nightmare like none other.

A soft giggle startled him. They both sat up. The next instant, Kouichi saw a lake beside him. _That wasn't there before_. He was panicking. Forcing himself to calm down, Kouichi tried to think rationally. Nothing was working. He was sweating now, not sure what to expect.

The next second it happened. He was underwater, choking and gasping for air. Someone was pushing him under, forcing him down. He managed to push the hands away and float to the surface, trying to break free of the holds of the water. Instead of reaching the top, Kouichi was sinking down to the bottom, unable to break the cap of ice that prevented him from breaking free. The more he struggled, the faster he sank.

A bright flash of light was followed by a change in scenery. He was floating in darkness; there was no bottom or top. Kouichi took the time to catch his breath. _She...she wasn't Kako_, he realized. _It was an illusion_. What he feared the most was betrayal of those he loved. Takuya had urged him to send Kako and Kouji to Hawaii together, and yet he wasn't sure of the results.

He wanted it to go his way. He was afraid either Kako or Kouji would betray him.

Trembling, Kouichi shook his head and sank to his hands and knees. _No,_ he told himself, wanting to shout out loud. _That's not how it works. We aren't together. This is only if we both want it_. He picked himself up. He had no time to inhale before he found himself dropping.

Everything seemed to be going so fast. Seeing his first encounter with Cherubimon playing before him, Kouichi began to wonder if he had died and was being judged. _Enma, just take me down already_, he thought miserably, shutting his eyes and rubbing his forehead.

_Are you paying attention? No? Do not anger me, son of darkness_, a voice pierced through his head.

Kouichi's eyes widened in fear. He recognized the voice immediately. All was black again, but he could see the hazy red. A flash of pain seared through him and Kouichi screamed.

It was just as how it had been back when Duskmon had been forced upon him. He was reliving that time again. Shakily, Kouichi forced himself to remain calm. There was another flash, and the pain returned twice as bad as it had come before. Kouichi whimpered now, squeezing his eyes shut and clenching his fists to relieve the pain. A wave of pain now descended upon Kouichi, mercilessly threatening to tear him limb from limb.

An endless scream was ripped from his throat. Kouichi silently begged himself to shut his mouth, tried to move his hand to force it shut. When nothing worked, he cried out in pain and anguish. _I need to fight this_, he thought miserably. _God, when was this pain so bad?_

Through his screaming, Kouichi found a way to quiet down and open his eyes. The answer clicked into his head almost immediately--_Kouji_.

He had hurt Kouji.

"K-Kou...Kouji," Kouichi sputtered trying to look _through_ Duskmon. There, in front of him, lay a battered Kouji glaring up at him defiantly. Kouichi's heart skipped a beat. _This_, he realized happily, trying to force himself out of Duskmon as Kouji began to digivolve. It worked, if only for a mere second. Kouichi was brought back into the dark confines of his prison and for the second time, a light shone, and he was no longer there.

_My regrets_, he thought, taking his time to shut his eyes and breath before anything else happened. It had been a shaking experience, almost as real as it had been the first time. _Duskmon, Cherubimon...my regrets_. _Maybe these aren't illusions...but...real...?_ It was certainly a possibility.

When Kouichi opened his eyes, he found himself on the quiet Hawaiian beach, staring up at the sunset. Soft pastel colors of the sky seemed to dance in the distance. The sea brushed back and forth in a gentle rhythm, creating a calming song for him. _What I want_..._  
_  
Kouichi lay back on the shore, smiling as the waves crept up just enough to reach his toes. The sand was warm, but not nearly as warm as the presence beside him. "I told you sunsets were better," he heard himself say in a smug voice. His eyes were shut, and his arms lay unmoving by his sides.

A soft sigh was emitted in response. There was an incoherent mumble. He turned his head towards the form beside him and opened his eyes. Kako rolled her eyes and then shut them. Her voice was quiet, but her words rang in Kouichi's ears as she asked, "You always say you're right, Kouichi. What will happen the day you're wrong...?"

_Wake...UP!_ Kouichi forced himself to sit up and look down at the illusion of Kako. "You aren't real," he said aloud.

Kako said nothing, but remained immobile.

"You _aren't_ real! None of this is real! Go _away_," Kouichi yelled.

Lights of different colors swirled around him, nauseating Kouichi. Dizzy, sick and tired, he fell on his back, meeting the gentle touch of wings instead of the fine, but grainy, sand.

"Good job, Kouichi," the melodious voice said, a giggle following her statement. "I can definitely see where this will lead."

Too tired to open his eyes, Kouichi mumbled, "Who...who are you?" The voice was familiar, but he couldn't quite place it.

A woman's voice, he could tell, but he wasn't sure _whose_ voice it was. There was a soft sigh and then a distant laugh. "Kouichi, you should wake up now..." she reminded him.

Kouichi found himself floating through calm waters. "Wake up now," he repeated. "_Now_." It took a few more seconds before he could open his eyes and adjust them to the dark space of the empty room. All the weapons had been put away, and the racks had been removed. Realizing he was still shaking, Kouichi drew a breath and shut his eyes.

The nightmare was over.

The focusing was beginning.

-------------------------------------

"I bet that book he won't make it," Lowemon murmured in a glum voice.

All the digimon sat around the entrance of the bookstore, discussing Kouichi. Duskmon snorted and pointed to the nearest shelf. "I bet you _the shelf_ that he will."

Kazemon giggled but said nothing. Agunimon rested his head on the table. He looked up at Kazemon, who sat across from him and asked, "I thought you were spying for Izumi?"

"Izumi figured it was best to do it herself," Kazemon answered with a dismissive wave. "Kumamon, shouldn't you be helping Tomoki with his deciphering?"

Kumamon sat in the seat next to Agunimon, his gaze following Duskmon and Lowemon as they bickered. "Yeah...I guess, but he said he wanted to do it himself. When do you think they'll get to betting the entire store?" He sent a blank look in the direction of Blitzmon.

A hand scratching his head thoughtfully, Blitzmon shrugged. "Have any of you heard from Junpei?" he suddenly asked.

The rest of the digimon (save Lowemon and Duskmon who were too absorbed in their argument) fell silent. Blitzmon cleared his throat and looked at the ceiling, trying to hum innocently.

There was a growl. "You're stupid!" snapped Duskmon.

"I bet _the entire store_!" Lowemon yelled back.

"Lack of faith!"

"Cretin!"

"Imbecile!"

"Rhi-"

Agunimon burst into flames angrily and quite literally. Although the flames that surrounded him did not touch the chair, they still existed. "YOU LOST TRACK OF JUNPEI?" he practically screamed at Blitzmon. This was followed by a battle cry and Agunimon (now not flaming) lunging for the thunder warrior.

Falling silent, Duskmon and Lowemon gazed upon Agunimon and Blitzmon. Duskmon was the first to break the silence. "Two books that Blitzmon will win!" he yelled immediately, glaring at Lowemon.

With a scowl, Lowemon stated his own wager and the battle began again.

Kazemon and Kumamon let out a sigh and exchanged exasperated looks. Under her breath, Kazemon murmured, "Marise looks like he's getting annoyed." Kumamon sent a look in the man's direction.

Indeed, Marise's temper was rising into a dangerous level. There was a loud slam of the paperback book. Behind his glasses, his eyes flashed dangerously. He didn't yell, but did say in a harsh tone, "_Please_ refrain from fighting in my presence and using my books as money. The last thing we need is a failed campaign and Lucemon marching down the street in his victory parade. Blitzmon, you will not see Junpei for a while. Kumamon, stay by Tomoki's side until he deciphers it. Kazemon and Agunimon, watch over Izumi and Takuya respectively. I'm more worried about what they will do than what Rai and Hideki will do. And _Lowemon_." Marise stopped and exhaled sharply, "_I beg of you to have more faith in Kouichi_." He stood up and motioned to the door to the back room. "The last thing he needs is to find that _you_ of all people did not believe he could pass the test we have set up for him. Duskmon. Since Ms. Kimura can see you and only you, _you_ will tell her that Kouichi will be departing for Hawaii for the remainder of the week. Now be gone, all of you!"

Slowly, the digimon disappeared in their own fashion. Lowemon was the only digimon left in the room after the reluctant departure of Blitzmon who had wanted to discover the whereabouts of Junpei.

Hesitant, Lowemon looked at the room. "Marise, you know-"

Marise interrupted him, "Yes, now quiet, Lowemon. He's almost finished." The man returned to his book, seeming completely unperturbed.

As he had predicted, Kouichi walked out of the room with an equally placid manner. "Lowemon," he greeted the digimon in front of him instantly before turning to Marise. "That was-"

"Yes."

The boy started again. "But she's-"

"Yes."

"And you-" Kouichi didn't bother to finish the sentence. Instead he looked away, a sad, almost broken look on his face.

In a very soft voice, Marise affirmed this, "Yes. Yes, Kouichi, Harumi is dead, and yes, it's all an illusion. I'm not sure what you saw myself, Kouichi." He admitted this in a casual manner, his eyes never leaving the book. "Don't let it get to your head during the flight. Lowemon and Duskmon will _both_ be accompanying you. It's a one-day flight there and a one-day flight back if you remain completely focused. Kouichi," Marise said sharply, book placed on the counter. He held out a hand, and in it, Kouichi's D-Tector. Marise's voice softened as Kouichi approached tentatively and reached for his D-Tector. "Your troubles start now. Your friends and enemies have been set in place, but there _will be betrayal_. Volunteer no information and make an excuse to those you do not know. Ichiro is to be trusted, but the other is not," Marise cautioned him.

The D-Tector felt cold in Kouichi's hand. Numbly, he nodded and took it from Marise. "Alright," he whispered. The boy turned his head to Lowemon. "Where's Duskmon?" asked Kouichi.

"Your mother now knows you'll be gone for the rest of the week and she nearly killed me with a knife," Duskmon's voice echoed throughout the room as he appeared from a nearby shadow. "What's the time? Six nineteen?"

Lowemon nodded curtly. "We should go now," he told Kouichi.

Smiling, Kouichi nodded, taking one last look at Marise. Quickly, he bowed to the man before dashing out, not even bothering to wave.

-------------------------------------

They sat in a hidden cave that miraculously had some sand in it. While Kako began to absentmindedly pile the sand up, Kouji gazed at the almost bright sky. It was still a pale blue, nothing like the colors he had seen the night before. He looked at Kako and asked her, "So why _did_ you ditch Surfer boy?"

Kako replied with a question of her own, "Have you noticed we only talk to each other when we have questions?" She reminded Kouji of a child, the way she sat down and played with the sand. Her eyes were focused before her and on nothing else.

"Yes I have, now just _answer the question_."

Again, she asked, "Why didn't you get your spirit yet?" It was an innocent question, but it had hit home. Kouji was now glaring at Kako and she didn't seem to mind one bit.

Impatiently, he stood up and walked over to Kako. Kouji gazed down at her before stepping in her pile of sand that went down easily. Just to emphasize it, he twisted his foot to the right and lifted his other foot up so he was facing her. There was an almost emotionless face in front of Kako as Kouji squatted down to her level. "Answer the question," Kouji repeated in a soft, dangerous voice.

Instead of answering or looking at him with a deadly gaze of her own, Kako smiled down at the sand and began a smaller pile. Kouji smashed it with his left hand and leaned forward until she had to look up at him. Again he repeated, "Answer the question," but Kako had other plans. The girl smiled at Kouji and pointed a finger at him, moving it forward until it reached his forehead. Caught off guard, Kouji found himself toppling backwards. Kako stood up and hovered her foot over his stomach. He was obviously startled.

"I'm _annoyed_," Kako began. Again, she repeated and continued, "I'm _annoyed_, okay? I haven't had breakfast, I dropped Piximon off in the kitchen _literally_, you're bugging me, and I don't know _what the hell_ Kouichi's doing. I'm sick of this, you're acting like you're the only person on this damn island who's had a bad day, and I'm _sick of it_." She placed her foot down on the other side of Kouji. "You will _not_ annoy me, or I will _kill _you before Lobomon has the _slightest_ chance to save you, _got it_?" she growled.

Kouji looked up at her with bored eyes. Kako, angered by his reaction, lifted her second foot and was about to bring it down on his stomach when Kouji grabbed her leg and swept her off her feet. The sand cushioned her fall, but not as much as she had hoped. It still hurt when she found Kouji hovering over her, a gleam in his eyes. Either of his hands were pinning down Kako's, and one leg was lightly positioned over both her legs, careful not to apply too much pressure. His face was slightly tilted to the side in the position he was in, making Kako more unsure of his motives.

_No_, she thought, trembling as he continued to gaze unblinkingly at her, _it couldn't be Kouichi. It _had_ to be Kouji. I could stand an evil Kouichi better!_ Kako shut her eyes and turned her head to the side.

There was a deep sigh before Kako opened her eyes. Kouji released his hold of her, rolling to the side before lying down and shutting his own eyes. "Just answer the goddamn question, _please_," he groaned.

Kako sat up immediately, looking down at Kouji with an increased amount of worry. "Are you okay?" she blurted, a hand falling on his forehead. She scooted beside him, unsure of what to think. Biting her lower lip, Kako told him, "Kouji, you're working up a fever..."

The bandana boy shook his head and pushed her hand aside. Sitting up, he turned his back to Kako to face the wall. "I'm not," he told her in a blunt voice, "It's just the sun." There was a brush past his side and Kouji whirled around to catch Kako's hand. "What are you doing?" he demanded.

"How fast does Velgemon fly?" Kako returned, voice taking a grave tone. She made it sound as if he was going to die.

Slipping his eyes shut and falling back down, Kouji shrugged. "Fast. Hey, Kako..."

"Yes?"

His voice was dry and Kouji felt the strength being sapped out of him, but he managed to ask in a croaky voice, "Why _did_ you run after me like that?" In truth he was curious. Kako was as spontaneous as the word itself.

She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "I guess..." Kako shook her head and started again, "I guess I thought you were going to do something, but you didn't...so I guess I wanted to make sure you fixed things up with your family first. Actually, neither of those things happened. Things got worse, huh?" A forced nod from Kouji answered her question. Kako smiled at his calm figure and shook her head. "Kouji, why don't you get some rest here? I'll wake you up in an hour," she suggested, dialing the number to Kouichi's house when he nodded and fell into a slumber like no other he had encountered.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi, having digivolved into Velgemon, was _not_ enjoying the feeling of his stomach bubbling. As wonderful as the flight was, it unsettled him. Focusing ahead instead of below, Kouichi imagined Hawaii, but not for long. As Velgemon he could cover a great amount of space in little time, but he wasn't sure how long it would take to get Hawaii especially if his mind kept going off on tangents.

_Don't focus on the time_, he told himself, _focus on the sky ahead_. He looked down and saw ocean. _Not there yet_. After a few more seconds he looked down and saw ocean. _Not yet_...

Feeling himself grow impatient, Velgemon flew faster, taking advantage of his large wings. Ahead he could see an airplane and, to avoid suspicion, gained altitude, soaring higher into the sky. He passed above the plane with increased speed, more determined than ever to reach Hawaii. Part of Kouichi wondered if he had disrupted the flight in any way, but with a quick look behind him, he discovered it remained completely untouched.

As far as he was concerned, Kouichi had traveled hours so far, and he had come nowhere. _Marise did say it would take all day_, he thought glumly.

A few more hours passed and Velgemon was flying amid a setting sun. It was a few minutes after that when he finally found what he was looking for. _Which house...?_ Kouichi landed on an abandoned part of the beach and dedigivolved. Hopping over the driftwood and remains of broken boats, he looked to the sky. "Duskmon, Lowemon, can you spot out the house? Lowemon, I think you should. Duskmon's a target at this point," he murmured to both digimon.

Lowemon obliged and was off while Kouichi sat by the shore and gazed out into the ocean. The thought that Kako was watching the same sun at the moment, the thought that she was so close...the thought that Kouji was here, the thought that he was with her...it scared and reassured Kouichi at the same time. He let out a sigh and relaxed, feeling his stomach growl in protest. It made sense; after flying around all day with no stops, he had every right to be drained and hungry. Feeling weak, Kouichi stumbled forward when he stood up, barely supported by Duskmon.

"Get up," the digimon commanded in a gruff voice. "I can't support you while people are watching." He pushed Kouichi forward, forcing the boy to regain balance on his own. It was then that Lowemon returned, gazing at Kouichi's stumbling form.

The Warrior of Darkness shook his head. "He looks drunk."

Duskmon agreed with a nod. "I'll force him to digivolve into me and bring him there," he muttered. Before Lowemon could protest if he wanted to, Duskmon had seized control of Kouichi and melted into the shadows.

Lowemon let out a frustrated sigh before he made his way to the house the Minamoto's had rented.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Another chapter done! They seem to get longer... Ah, and I have a question. It's more of a personal thing, but should I do Japanese next year? I want to, but I'm not sure. That's the question of the day. Dragonlance books are good and pokes are bad. When seven people poke you randomly at different times in the day, pray pokes don't affect you. They find it amusing when I squeal or something. T.T Some friends. Yes we're finally moving somewhere with the story! Sorry if I take my time to update, I'm pretty busy until after April 2, and my dad hogs the computer.

Thank you for the reviews!-

**Lady Hikari-Yami, GemmaniGirl, Winter's Light**

Review or PM or Flame.


	22. Kanbara Squared

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Kanbara Squared: Ultra Cool Special #1

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----S----H----I----N----Y----A----

We all know where Kouji and Kako are right now. Hawaii. Kouichi's in Hawaii, too, or so Agunimon told me. Izumi and Takuya are trying to get Rai and Hideki back together by complaining about each other. Izumi claims my brother's getting drunk with Hideki and asks Rai for advice (and no, Takuya's not really getting drunk) and in turn, my brother complains about Izumi's Rai-like faults to Hideki.

They entrusted me with this knowledge. Said if I told Rai and Hideki, I'd be sent to a Sagitarrimon for grammar lessons. And I'm guessing that's bad.

I don't really know where Junpei is. Blitzmon is clueless, too, and that's the funny part about it, although if Junpei's stuck in some hole, I suppose it's not so funny. As for Tomoki, my dear old buddy and pal...well, he's off romancing with Bokomon's book. Not literally mind you, but that's his entire life. It happened about a week ago, when he finally had the guts to open the thing.

-Flashback-

_For the eighty-seventh time that hour, I knocked on Tomoki's door_. _Counting to eighty-seven is hard work_, _especially if you're counting how many times you knocked_. _It's not as easy as it seems, I assure you_.

_For the eighty-seventh time that hour, I stepped away from the door and waited_.

_For the eighty-seventh time that hour, no one answered the door_.

_I'm no idiot. I'm not like Takuya_. _Where he would scream and yell, throw his goggles down and tear his hair off_..._I goof around_. _Not in a bad way, mind you, but just the playful, innocent way where you just happen to sneak in through the back door or the window or something_. _It's not like it will kill anyone_ (_unless they die of a heart attack_).

_So that's what I did_. _I crawled through his window, which, thankfully, was open_. _Tomoki sat at his desk, not gazing at the computer, but the green book in his hands_. "_Tomoki!_" _I half-yelled half-sang_, "_what's that?_"

_He jumped in his seat and whirled his head in my direction_. _Ever since he lost the giant hat, his head seemed to grow_. _At first, it looked the size of a mouse. And then_..._it became proportional to his body, we'll say_.

_Back to Tomoki_. _He was trying to catch his breath. Pointing a finger at me, he bobbed his head up and down, mouth open_. _Nothing came out of it, though_.

_I made a face and shut my eyes_. "_Close your mouth!_" _I declared_. _I've always found the human mouth to be a very, very disgusting place_. _That narrows my dream job down by a few_.

_Furiously clamping his mouth shut, Tomoki glared at me. He finally spoke in an annoyed tone_, "_Why did you crawl through the window? You could have taken the door._" _He even looked annoyed, and for Tomoki, that was rare_.

_Shrugging, I replied_, "_Thought you'd need help with the book. How's it coming?_" _To set things straight, I was curious. Everyone seemed busy doing one thing or another, and I had nothing to do_. _The digimon didn't really care much about me, either_. _Oh, and Marise_ (_don't tell him I said this_) _is boring_.

_Tomoki just shrugged_. _Sometimes I wonder if he's just sick of my presence. I can get really annoying if I want to_, _and he never seemed to mind before. But now he just seemed annoyed_. "_I'm fine. I'm just looking through it, that's all_," _he told me, as if to explain himself_. _As he did, he casually began to flip through the pages, smiling from the nostalgia it gave off_.

_From in front of the window_, I_ leaned against the windowsill with my elbows propped up against it_. _For at least ten minutes, Tomoki sat there and I watched as his expression changed as he flipped through the book_._ It made me wonder if this Bokomon mon was really important_.

_When Tomoki reached the last page, he let out a startled cry_. _Immediately he turned to the computer and began clicking and typing furiously_, _reminding me of Takuya in front of the TV while playing videogames_. _After that, he completely ignored me, despite the fact that I stood in that same spot for another two hours_.

-End Flashback-

Kumamon was the one who told me that the last page of Bokomon's book was encoded in a special language. Tomoki k_ne_w it was important, so he spent all of the month trying to decipher it. With Takuya and Izumi busy with Hideki and Rai, Junpei off who knew where, Kako and Kouji getting ready for Hawaii and Kouichi training, I...

I'm _not_ a loner! Ever since I met all of Takuya's friends, I've become closer to them than my actual friends, Tomoki especially. This would normally be the part where I sit down, cross my arms across my chest, stick out my tongue and say, "No fair."

I was in the kitchen when this entire mess started. A new mess. Nothing to do with Tomoki, but mostly my own idiocy. _Moping_. That's the word! I was moping in the kitchen when Mom asked, "Shinya, why don't you go buy something from the store for me?" I shrugged indifferently and she frowned. Normally I would have jumped up and demanded what she wanted me to get. Now I was too bored to be my usual hyperactive self.

She gave me the list and the money and I got going. _Bread, butter, salt, sugar. At least this time I can carry everything_, I thought jokingly, hoping to cheer myself up. Don't ever try that. It's horrible.

The first thing I spotted when I walked into the store was Junpei. He stood way out in the crowd in my eyes. Junpei's the kind of guy I respect. Strong, smart, and he knows _awesome_ magic tricks, too! He's great at DDR. Junpei once told me, "_If you're going to do something you hate, do it in a manner you like!" _He hates exercise, but DDR is his form of exercise. DDR while eating chocolate is even better, he tells me, and I'm taking his word for it. I plan to try it sometime, just after I get over the last time where I choked.

I called out his name and waved to him, now smiling brightly. Junpei looked around uneasily and when he caught sight of me, froze in place. This allowed me to catch up to him as I ran over. "Hey, are you shopping, too?" It was a stupid question. I was bored. So sue me.

Junpei just stared at me as if he was looking a shark in the eye. Takuya's not scared of me. Not even Kouichi is, or Kouji or Izumi or Tomoki, and that says a lot...I think. He continued to stare at me unblinkingly until I finally asked why he was staring at me. It was more like I yelled, "WHY ARE YOU STARING AT ME? IT'S CREEPY! IT'S NOT LIKE I'VE SUDDENLY CHANGED INTO TAKUYA!" but saying that I asked why he was staring at me seems slightly more civilized.

Finally, Junpei started to cry. I felt awkward from then on. Completely forgetting about the list, I took the item in his hand, went to the register, bought it with the money Mom gave me (she'd have _killed_ me if she ever found out, but I replaced it with my own money later on) and handed Junpei the bag. "You okay?" I asked him. I was totally doubting that he'd say yes.

My instincts are great!

With a sniffle, Junpei shook his head. "S-sorry," he blubbered as we walked out of the store. "I...I just..." He quickly swiped his eyes clean with his sleeve and glared down at me coldly. In his most menacing voice, Junpei growled, "Get lost kid." He looked...constipated if anything.

For the longest while I stared at him, unable to break my gazeaway. When I finally did, I burst into fits of laughter, doubling over and clutching my stomach. Cackling hard, I managed to say, "Oh, oh...that's rich!" The thought of it continued my laughter until Junpei grabbed me by the collar and dragged me until we were by the bike racks to the side of the building. Hardly anyone went over there unless they, quite obviously, wanted to put away their bike.

"Listen," he hissed, a serious look on his face. "You'll be in danger if you follow me. DO NOT, got that? I don't want Takuya getting into this too." He made me sound smart. With an impatient sigh, Junpei took the item out of the bag and shoved everything else at me. "I'm supposed to have shoplifted this," he mumbled grumpily.

I was shocked. My almost an idol, a _shoplifter_? Too bad to be true! I mentally crossed him off my role model list. Kouichi was next, tied with Kouji. A look of disgust passed over my face and I turned away from Junpei, muttering, "Traitor." I had no idea how right I was.

Junpei walked away. I dropped the bag, glaring at his back. Something told me to follow him. It was far more interesting than buying the things, then going back home to mope. Junpei stopped in front of a large white house. No flowers, no other colors. Completely white, though some parts were chipped off to reveal other colors, and parts were covered with grime and dirt. The roof was brown!

...I prefer orange.

I watched Junpei walk into the house without a problem. Eagerly I dashed forward, making it through before the door closed. Yes, Junpei left the door open. I bet he wished he hadn't! He told me later he wished he hadn't.

From then on, I couldn't find a trace of Junpei. There were billions of doors. The doors were this really dark blue, the stairwell and banister were brown, and pretty much everything else was white. Hearing voices from above (No, not angels or God or any Gods. People talking on the second floor), I skipped up the stairs and tried to locate the room. There were at least twenty, and in the hall behind me, probably fifty.

Funny thing was that the house didn't look so large on the outside. And with all the white, I doubted they needed a light in the house. From peeking in and out of the rooms, I counted about twenty big lamps, though. Whoever lived here obviously needed to do some redecorating. All but one of the rooms was empty, void of furniture and white. Completely, utterly white.

While peeking in one of the rooms, I discovered it had furniture. Lots of it. It was pink, too, and there was this girl at the desk. I was about to run out when she looked up and caught my eyes. One word flashed through my mind to describe her. _ANNOYING_.

She sniffed when she saw me, and she had a haughty air about her. Standing up, the girl walked up to me. I barely had to lift my neck to look up at her like I had to with my brother. Takuya's taaaaaall. It hurts my neck to see him. Or maybe...am I short?

I don't want to hear this! Quiet! I'm plugging my ears now.

The girl was probably a good...three...four, five maybe...yeah, four inches taller than yours truly. Black eyes, not warm at all, were focused in a narrow gaze in my direction. She reminded me of the good witch in 'The Wizard of Oz.' I never liked that movie. The good witch scared me. She looked pretty, but she had this scary, evil look to her.

Yeah, yeah, the girl looked pretty, sure, but she had _wrinkles_! I saw wrinkles, I swear! Maybe because my eyes are just too darn cool for the world. Maybe I'm not krill, but a _bird_! Or a bee! Instead of an evil look, it was more weird, annoying and annoying times two.

"Are you the new recruit? God, they get shorter as it goes along. Kanaye's resorting to second graders, isn't he?" From those first words, I immediately disliked her. If I was in second grade, she was no older than a third grader!

Staying silent, I watched as she walked over to the desk and pushed papers to the floor until she found what she was looking for. A pink cell phone was flipped open and raised to her ear after she pressed a few numbers. "_Kanaye_, where are you?" she snapped into the phone. The conversation went on and I grew bored.

I recalled hearing the name 'Kanaye' before, but I wasn't sure where. There had been several times, actually, I just wasn't sure _where_. It wasn't so hard to shrug it off.

Bored out of my mind, and wondering where Junpei had gone, I wandered out of the room, sliding down the banister to the first floor. I guess the girl was too preoccupied with the phone, because she didn't notice. From there, I began to explore the first floor.

-------------------------------------

In the meantime, Junpei had been having his own troubles. As he described to me, he had taken a path known to only Ritsuo, his gang and Kanaye, and met up with the guy. Ritsuo, whom I discovered to be no more muscular than Takuya, stood a good inch or two taller than Junpei, had blond hair (he dyed it, I swear) and I didn't pay attention to his eyes.

I managed to stumble upon this path and reach Junpei.

Let's start from the beginning, shall we?

Junpei reached the meeting room and managed to loose me without much trouble. As it turns out, he was supposed to have _stolen_ a bag of candy from the store, because the guys were lacking imagination and hungry.

"Not too much trouble?" Ritsuo sneered as Junpei entered the room.

Throughout the weeks, Junpei had managed to muster a calm, confident attitude around the boys. He snorted in return and tossed the bag to Ritsuo. The leader of the gang then scowled, "I said I hated coconut candy!"

One of the other boys raised a hand somewhat timidly. In a low voice, he offered, "Hey, boss, I'll take it if you don't want it." Well, I don't know if they say it, but if you wish for ill, you certainly get it. Ritsuo threw the entire bag in the guy's face.

No one said anything as Ritsuo sank down in the armchair. Folding his arms across his chest, he looked away. "I'm allergic to coconut," he muttered in a somewhat childish way.

That was the only eventful event that happened before I came. Before that, they fell into complete silence, candy was passed around, and they ate. I came in, and there was silence before a cacophonous melody consisting of howls, yells and shouts met my ears. It was funny if you ask me. Junpei went completely pale.

A good eighteen minutes passed after I was pounced on by at least five of them. It gave me the idea to bug Kouji to teach me a bit of kendo when I saw him next. I was flat out beat in less than a minute, despite my awesome attacks, which, sadly, only consisted of struggling like a fish out of water.

They tied me down to the armchair that Ritsuo had sat in, but not very well. Although I could slip out, I instead made it look as if they tied me down well and I was struggling to get in a comfortable position. Slipping out could come later.

For a while, Ritsuo paced before me, and Junpei was trying to calm his nerves in the corner. The rest of the guys were eating candy in front of me. Trying to make a conversation, I asked, "Can I have some?" Instead of answering, they just stared at me and ate some more. I was reminded that I hadn't eaten breakfast that day. It's a bad habit of mine; during the school week, I always wake up late and have no time for breakfast.

Seventeen minutes of tying rope around me had been a complete waste. Takuya and I could do better in a second; we tend to tangle with our videogame controllers. No more 'tango,' just the 'tangle!'

I held in there for a while longer when that girl from earlier and a boy about Takuya's height walked into the room. Trying not to doze off, I nodded my head, mentally yelling at myself, _Stay awake, Shinya! You've come this far!_ It kind of worked when I told myself it was the most exciting thing I'd done all week.

The boy marched straight towards me. Kind of strange, because unlike the girl, whom I despised greatly, I kind of liked the guy. He seemed like the ones I could catch completely off guard. "Are you Kanaye?" I asked interestedly, eyes wide and bright. "You know, I just remembered my brother said a lot about you!" And I proceeded to tell him all the horrible things Takuya had said about Kanaye.

The boy's eyes glittered with utter annoyance for a brief moment after I had finished my long line of insults with a grinning finale. He shut his eyes and inhaled deeply before he told me, "Yes, I am Kanaye. Your brother chooses his words wisely." Kanaye spat out the last sentence. If Takuya dies tomorrow, don't blame me.

I can usually tell if a person is like my brother (good) or like spinach (bad). At first glance, the guy was like Takuya. When you got to know him, he was pure spinach leaves. Spinach is disgusting. I summed it up to tell myself he was a popular kind of guy with a nasty personality. Spinach is nasty, too.

"Ritsuo, you know the rest. The job is done," Kanaye announced, turning around.

Almost everyone else had their jaw drop to the ground. I gazed around the room, confused. "Wait, what?" I asked, moving my head side to side wildly.

Kanaye turned back around, a smirk evident on his features. He snapped his fingers, and for the next few whatevers, seconds, minutes or hours, I remembered darkness.

-------------------------------------

I awoke outside the house, on Junpei's back. He was carrying me back home, I presumed, because the store was way behind us, and we were only a house away from my house. Slightly annoyed that I had fallen asleep, I pushed away, forcing him to drop me.

Junpei looked more than sorry. He should have been, letting me sleep through all the action. All I did was stare at him, and he told me everything; how he was bullied, how he had been forced into working for Kanaye, how it was all a plot to get to me apparently.

There's nothing important about me, but sure, I bought it. I inquired, "What did he do? How'd I fall asleep?"

Shrugging, Junpei looked away, walking me to the gate. "I don't know," he whispered softly.

Everyone's hiding something from me, but I knew Junpei wasn't. He was as clueless as I was, and that made me happy in a way. It's like talking to Duskmon. He's _never_ lied to me before. Beaming as if nothing bad had happened, and nothing bad really did, I patted Junpei's shoulder in a reassuring manner. "Don't worry!" I told him, "We'll all be fine!"

But watching as he waved and sulked away without even saying anything in return, I really wondered if that was the case. In Hawaii, I found out later from Lowemon that it wasn't.

----T----A----K---U----Y----A----

Izumi and I promised to meet up at the cafe just down the arcade at around lunch. I couldn't really trust Hideki home alone, what with Kako and Piximon gone, so I dragged him along.

We arrived in the cafe ten before twelve, and there was no sign of Izumi, just as I hoped it would be. I took a seat and glared at Hideki until he sat down. It was a reluctant movement, but I've had to drop the therapist tone for the moment and pull up the, 'I'm annoyed with all of Izumi's faults!' act.

I started it with an impatient sigh, then taking a glance at the watch. My gaze switched to the unclean tabletop. "The table isn't clean," I muttered under my breath. "Izumi's late."

"Technically, she's just not here yet. She'd be late if was after twelve," Hideki pointed out to me.

Ignoring him, I snapped, "She usually comes early!" I sat back in my seat and folded my arms across my chest, an annoyed look on my face. Although it seemed as if I was caught up in my own nonexistent problems, I was carefully absorbing Hideki's every reaction.

My goggles are strapped on just tight enough so they won't fall off, thus my brain isn't dead or affected in any way by my goggles. Oh, you knew? Making sure.

Letting out a small sigh, Hideki murmured, "Rai was always fifteen minutes early..." and then he trailed off into dreamland. It's been like this since Izumi and I started our whole plot. Hideki completely spaces out, and we haven't had the chance to ask Kako why. I certainly don't want to assume why. It made me miss my krill of a brother's company even more. He said it himself, krill is _definitely_ smaller than shrimp.

I caught a glimpse of Izumi's long blonde hair as she walked in the doorway. Sitting on the edge of my seat and trying to lift my head, I also managed to deduct that she had a guest with her, and it didn't take a genius to know who it was.

"Ms. Kawai...so...so nice to see you," I blurted, rising to my feet as my biology teacher and girlfriend walked towards the table.

Hideki lurched forward as if something had hit him in the back of his head. Dropping his hands to his sides, he focused a wide-eyed gaze in my direction. In turn, I gave him a panicked look and shrugged my shoulders, disguising the shrug to make it look as if I was casually rolling my shoulders back.

Izumi seemed perfectly calm, as if she expected this. It would be a lot better if she told me these things ahead of time, but I suppose it was for the better that she hadn't. Had I known this was going to happen, I would have been calm, and Hideki would have walked out. This way, Hideki was obliged to stay.

I was sitting next to Hideki, and the way the table was situated (it was square with four chairs on each side), Izumi sat next to me, leaving Rai to take the chair between Izumi and Hideki. Izumi's so smart...and I better not state my awesome plans for the future. You didn't hear that from me.

I am _not_ a pervert!

If she was in any way surprised herself, Rai didn't show it. Hideki, on the other hand, was drumming his fingers on the table in a nervous manner, speeding up and slowing down as the seconds ticked by.

Finally clapping her hands together and smiling brightly, Izumi was the first to say anything. "Let's order!" she suggested.

That made me want to cry. There was a frog stuck in my throat with several flies keeping it company. Every time I opened my mouth, a fly would buzz past the frog, and the frog would stick his tongue out to catch it. The result was me feeling like gagging and throwing up on the spot, shutting my mouth so it wouldn't happen.

The only people who ordered actual food were Izumi and Rai. I ordered a soda, and Hideki remained mute. He had now stopped drumming his fingers on the table, and for that I was glad, but he didn't give Rai so much as a stare. His eyes wandered everywhere but in the direction of Rai.

Ms. Kawai on the other hand, seemed pleased. Women are very tricky, I've been told, and she's the trickiest of all tricksters. Actually, I take that back; she's the second, Izumi is first. A few times, I caught her gazing in Hideki's direction, as if to study him. It was heartbreaking because during those times, Hideki was gazing at the table in a silent, moody manner.

We ate in absolute silence, save for the end when my cup of soda was near empty and I was slurping loudly just to get a drop. It was about then that Hideki ran his fingers through his hair and stood up. "I'll be going now. Sorry to be a bother, Takuya," he murmured to me, waving absentmindedly in my direction before stepping towards the door.

"Sit. Down." All of us turned to Izumi, whose eyes were flashing dangerously. When Izumi is mad, it's best to not get in her way, I've learned. Kouji and I came to the conclusion that an angry girl is worse than a sick Kouichi. That's supposed to be impossible, by the way.

There was a crooked smile on Hideki's face as his hands fell on the chair when he turned his body to face us. "Cute, Izumi," he commented, "but that's not going to work. Besides, my break is almost over. I've got a job, you know."

Letting out an impatient sigh, Izumi snapped, "You _will_ sit down because if you don't, I'm going to tear you limb from limb. If I don't feel up to it, _Kako_ will. Do you understand?" Her eyes slipped shut at this point, and her hands were folded neatly on the table.

Rai was focused on her food, completely zoned out. I really wish I could have done the same, but I was done with my soda. Instead, I watched as Rai picked up the rice and let it drop out of her chopsticks. My head moved up and down with the chopsticks. I think Rai noticed, because eventually, she began moving it in all sorts of ways and my head followed. Yeah, we completely zoned out while Hideki and Izumi were arguing.

Hideki scowled, "I need the money, thanks. Later!"

"Get back here!" Izumi stood up and slammed her hands down on the table.

Childishly, Hideki stuck his tongue out. "No!" he yelled.

"I'm telling Kako!"

"What'll she do about it? She's in _Hawaii_."

"She'll come back and beat you up, that's what!"

Growling, Hideki slammed his hands down on the table himself. His voice rose with each word as he yelled, "I told her to tell Rai that I'm forgetting her and Kako told her! It's not like Kako wouldn't have told even though I-" He stopped in mid sentence and, for the first time that day, looked at Rai.

Ms. Kawai's eyes were wide. "You _what_?" she asked, rising to her feet.

I snapped out of my daze created by the chopsticks and looked around. If Izumi and Hideki's yelling hadn't attracted any attention, we were the center of the cafe now.

He swallowed and stepped back. In a quiet voice, Hideki murmured to himself, "So she didn't tell. I should have known." With great difficulty he turned around and strode out of the cafe, head held high.

Adults. They have _way_ too much pride.

Rai ran out of the cafe as well. I'm not sure if she went after Hideki or just wanted to escape the embarrassment. I wasn't sure I would ever find out, but I knew I didn't care.

I was in the cafe with Izumi. All eyes were on us, but it didn't matter. "It worked," she whispered, moving her chair beside me and resting her head on the crook of my neck. I sighed in response, leaning back in my chair so as to not inconvenience her. After weeks of constant work to put the two together, I finally had time alone with Izumi.

Everything was calm, perfect, serene...

I just wished it could have lasted that long.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Short chapter, sorry. First it was just going to be Shinya. Then I made it Shinya and Kouji. Then I decided Kouji would never come or come at a later chapter and made it the Kanbaras. Then it became Kanbara Squared, because I remembered naming a picture I saved of Maeda Ai and Maeda Aki as 'Maeda Squared.' Maeda Ai is awesome. Listening to Wada Kouji music results in me over thinking and imagining things that make me laugh. Shinya's character was so kender-like.

THANK YOU very muchously for the reviews and the PM- **Winter's Light, GemmaniGirl**

Reading them made me happy. To those who review or PM, it's like reading a story about you. I enjoy the books very much.

Review or Flame.


	23. Faraway From Truth

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Faraway From Truth

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Kako let Kouji sleep past noon. When he finally woke up, it was dinnertime, and all the questions he had wanted to ask her, all the things he had wanted to discuss with her (such as her grandfather and their dear old teacher, Mr. Ogata) were forgotten.

The salty scent in the air had grown stronger than he had remembered it before he slept. Sitting up, Kouji discovered the reason Kako had let him sleep longer. She was curled up with her back to him, fast asleep with his cell phone in her left hand. Shaking his head, he gently took the cell phone out of her hands and pocketed it. Kouji then placed a hand on her shoulder, shaking her lightly. "Kako," he murmured in a quiet voice. He was still tired, and it was hard to keep awake.

In her sleep, she was murmuring something. Something that started with a 'K,' Kouji observed It was completely unintelligible, just a bunch of nonsense following a 'K.' Instead of paying more attention to what she was saying like he wanted to, the boy shook her harder and repeated her name in a louder voice. When she still didn't rise, Kouji yelled, "Wake up!"

"Five more minutes, Mom," she mumbled, left hand raised. Kako waved it in his direction, nearly hitting the bandana boy's nose.

Kouji caught a hold of her hand, then rolled her over and leaned forward until his face was inches from hers. Just to be sure she wouldn't hit him, the boy grabbed a hold of her other hand and waited until she opened her eyes. The result after that was expected, in a way. Kako screamed and jumped into a sitting position. As Kouji was holding her wrists in his hands, he was yanked forward across her in consequence. He also let go of her wrists.

Pushing Kouji off, Kako slapped me away. _She _does_ hit hard, and I don't think she was even trying_, he thought, wincing. "Kouji!" she screamed furiously, edging away from me. "_DO NOT_ DO THAT TO ME!"

Rubbing his injured forehead and rising to his feet, Kouji muttered, "I told you to wake up."

Kako stood up as well, shaking her head and brushing the dirt from her clothes. She smiled softly as she looked out into the sky. The sunset was beautiful from the cave's entrance, and Kouji didn't really have to guess to know what was on her mind. "How are you feeling?" she asked, turning her head in my direction as she walked out of the cave. He turned away from her and silently walked a step behind her. At the moment, he felt more like a bodyguard than anything.

He guessed he must have worried her when he didn't answer because she turned her head around and gave him an odd look. Quietly, she murmured, "Kouji?"

The truth was that Kouji was spacing out. "Hm?" He shook my head, mainly to clear it. He realized that they had both stopped just outside the mouth of the cave. In the distance, Kouji saw a large dark dot, but was convinced it was just the sunset playing with his vision when he looked again in that direction and found nothing.

Sighing, Kako walked behind him and pushed him forward. "Let's move it," she muttered, knowing all too well what was wrong with him at the moment. He was thankful she didn't ask anymore. At the moment, talking seemed to hurt his throat, and while Kouji should have told her that, he didn't want to worry her.

_Kako's far more fussy than Mom, Satomi, Piximon and Kouichi put in a room all together when she wants to be_, Kouji observed with a smile. _Guess that's why Mom likes her_, he thought, walking on his own now and taking a glance at Kako as she now began to walk beside him. They strolled down the beach slowly, bathing in the last rays of the sun for the day. "We should call Kouichi," Kouji realized aloud, hand reaching into his pocket for his cell phone. Just as his fingers ran over it, he stopped. _No, he's probably training right now_.

"We should hurry," Kako pointed out, eyes glued to the sky. There was a dream-like look in her eyes as she turned her gaze to Kouji with a smile. With a laugh, she confessed, "I didn't eat breakfast or lunch and frankly, I'm hungry!"

Kouji was unable to control himself as he joined in Kako's laughter all the way back to the house.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi, gasping and choking, stumbled from the shadows Duskmon had come from before withdrawing himself from the boy. "G-gh...Duskmon, did you have to make it so tiring?" he managed to mumble, a hand outstretched as he tried to find the bed. "This isn't Dad's bedroom, is it? I'll be murdered if it is..."

Eventually Kouichi found the bed and plopped down, moving towards the wall it was situated against and pulling the covers well above his head. So many questions floated through his head, all waiting to be answered the next morning.

Duskmon watched in amusement, not meeting Lowemon's piercing gaze. "You realize in the morning he'll want to eviscerate you, right?" the digimon asked, shaking his head and turning his head in Kouichi's direction with a sigh.

The other digimon now looked at Lowemon. Chuckling, Duskmon returned, "That'll only be if he wants to do the same to himself." Absentmindedly he found himself looking at Kouichi once more. Amusement faded from his eyes as he quietly made his way outside.

Again shaking his head in exasperation, Lowemon took his post by the bed for the moment. _Kouichi, if you knew all the things that _thing_ did for you, and I'm sure you do, you'd be far more grateful. I wonder exactly how much energy he used up_. Gazing around the room, Lowemon fought the urge to groan. "And yet he still finds times for games," he muttered disapprovingly, quickly making his way out of the room, knowing all too well that if he didn't, he would be caught.

-------------------------------------

Pressing a hand against the wall, Kako made her way to her bedroom. Her eyes slipped shut occasionally, dripping with sleep. _Sleep_...

"Kako, you passed your room," Kouji murmured from behind her. He stood in front of the entrance to his own room, gazing at Kako with an eyebrow raised in question.

She looked over her shoulder slowly, blinking a few times to focus her view on Kouji. "I..." mumbled Kako, shifting her weight from one hand to another to turn her body around. "Uh...where's my room?"

Exhaling through gritted teeth, Kouji took a hold of Kako's arm and led her to her room, opening the door, pushing her in, then practically slamming the door shut. For five minutes, he leaned against the door and shut his eyes, wondering exactly what he was doing.

"..._night, Kouichi_," he heard Kako murmur.

Stunned, Kouji whirled around to see the shut door staring back at him blankly. He became convinced either Kako was dreaming, or he had been hearing things. _Either way, we must really miss Kouichi_, he observed as he walked into his own room.

After getting pushed inside by Kouji, Kako had semi come to her senses and quickly changed into her PJs, ignoring the fact that Piximon was still in the kitchen, and crawled into bed. Every muscle ached from the lack of action that day. Pushing the covers and crawling into bed, Kako yawned and murmured, "Good night, Kouichi." Falling into a state of unconsciousness, she snuggled up against the figure in the bed, warm, happy, and asleep.

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Yawning and rolling over to face the alarm clock, Kako stretched her arms in front of her at comfortable angles. _5:22. Too early_, the girl thought lazily, turning to face the wall. "Kouichi," she mumbled, "move over. You're hogging all the space..."

A groan answered her request, followed by shifting. Kako pulled the covers around her tighter. She found herself lacking warmth when the blanket was pulled off of her. Snapping to her senses, Kako rolled off the bed, landing on the floor in a noisy thud.

From the hall, faint screaming was heard, followed immediately by a thud. A few more dull hits sounded that could be heard from Kouji's room across the hall.

Rolling out of bed and on to his feet, Kouji rubbed his eyes sleepily. He didn't even want to look at the clock. _Who the hell is making all the racket at this hour? Did Piximon blast his way into Kako's room?_ A quick look at his surroundings revealed Piximon was fast asleep on a small table in the room. Frowning, Kouji walked out of the room. There was an annoyed look on his face as he opened Kako's door. It was soon replaced with utter surprise. Kouji quickly stepped to the side as Kouichi's body came flying out of the room, hitting the wall directly across. Horrified, Kouji dared to take a peek at Kako.

"TELL YOUR STUPID PERVERT OF A BROTHER TO STAY OUT OF MY ROOM THE NEXT TIME HE WANTS TO VISIT!" Kako screamed, pointing at Kouichi. She was crimson, a mix of fury and embarrassment on her face.

Groaning and sitting up, Kouichi mumbled, "I knew Duskmon was up to something..." The next second, he fell to his side and shut his eyes.

_I don't want to know_. Kouji walked over to his twin and lightly kicked the older boy's back. "Up," the bandana boy ordered, no trace of emotion visible on his face. "If you're going to sleep, do so in my room. Apparently, Kako doesn't want to admit how much she loves your co-"

He had no time to finish. Shrieking angrily, Kako threw the contents of her open suitcase at him. All Kouji could do was drag Kouichi into his room (thankfully it was only a foot away) and shut the door. With all the racket, he was amazed neither his father nor Satomi had woken up.

-------------------------------------

"Sorry," Kouichi mumbled, resting his head on the table and staring blankly at the bowl he was facing.

With a sigh, Kako pushed the bowl closer to his face. "Eat it," she snapped, looking away as her cheeks began to warm up again. A soft sigh was emitted from Kouichi and all traces of the blush vanished as she sent a quizzical look in his direction.

The younger twin sat with his chair backwards, chin resting on the table. There was a thoughtful look on his face as he looked at his older brother, contemplating what had brought him here.

Kouichi, on the other hand, felt incredibly miserable when he realized several things. _Duskmon tricked me in more ways than one_, the boy thought, eyes slipping shut. _Great. Kouji probably thinks I don't trust him now_. He winced as his brought his head up off the table. "I..."

Noticing the uneasiness in the air, Kako cleared her throat. For the sake of breaking the silence she asked, "Uh, so how'd you get here?" The other questions, such as what he had been doing in her bed, Kako decided to spare him at the moment.

Not up to talking, Kouichi mumbled, "Velgemon."

_Oh...we're taking the short answer quiz?_ Kako rolled her eyes. "Riiight..." she muttered. When Kouichi looked at her, trying to look completely serious, the girl snorted, "Next you'll be telling me it was a non-stop trip." His eyes left her and focused gloomily on the table space in front of him. Kako twitched. Pressing her lips together angrily, she chose not to speak.

Kouji said all the words for her. Sitting up straight, his hands dropped to his side. "_Idiot_," the bandana boy growled, slamming a hand down on the table and glaring at his brother. Kouichi just shrugged. "Who the hell told you not to make any stops?" Kouji demanded.

Eyes slipped shut. In a soft voice, Kouichi whispered, "Me." At a snort of annoyance, Kouichi's eyes opened, gazing at his brother with cold eyes. "Besides, it's not my fault I'm here," he declared, volume of his voice rising.

There were soft footsteps coming from the bedroom. "Kouji, is someone over?" a woman asked after a short yawn that sounded much more like a sigh.

The gentle voice of Satomi startled the three. Kako suffered the most shock as she tipped her chair to the side, yelping as she nearly fell over. Before Kouichi could make it under the table, Satomi walked into the room, her eyes widening for a split second before she turned around and headed back to the bedroom. "Kousei," she called out, "come here for a second, would you?"

There was a loud scuffle behind her back, in which Kouichi dove under the table. He was almost successful, and would have been had Kako and Kouji not jumped to their feet to pull him up. Kouji did most of the work, while Kako occasionally kicked Kouichi's shin or hit his shoulder.

"What is it?" Kousei asked. He yawned loudly, stretching his arms above him. As his eyes opened halfway through the yawn, all time ceased to stop.

Kouichi struggled against his brother's grip, trying to release his hands from behind him. "L-let me go! We aren't playing cop and robber here, Kouji!" he snarled, looking behind him and trying to step on the younger twin's feet.

Expertly, Kouji kept his feet well out of his brother's reach. Cackling, he returned, "Just reliving my childhood."

The girl rolled her eyes. "That was lame, Kouji."

"Like you could do better."

"Yeah."

"I'd like to s-"

"SHUT UP AND LET ME GO!" Kouichi screamed.

Kako aimed a kick for his shoulder. "WE'RE NOT TALKING TO YOU!" she snapped.

Pushing his brother back, Kouichi barely got out of harm's way. He looked down at the floor, utterly embarrassed that one, he was at the mercy of his brother and Kako and two, his father and step mother (although she was more Kouji's step mother than his own) were gazing at him with disbelief in their eyes.

Noticing the family moment in the air, Kako rushed to the bedroom to check for her backpack and Piximon, finding the digimon (who had skillfully managed to keep his stuffed animal appearance), picking him up, and racing out the door.

Kouji let go of his brother's hands and Kouichi shrugged him away, turning away from his father. He cleared his throat, eyes still glued to the floor. "I'm sorry...for the trouble," he murmured quietly.

Mr. Minamoto remained silent, trying to take in the sight before him. "Wh-when did you come?" the man found himself asking his older son. Somewhat hesitantly, he took two steps forward.

"Yesterday night." Kouichi dug his nails into his palms as much as possible to prevent himself from stepping out of line in any way.

The youngest Minamoto watched his father's expression change from calm to extremely puzzled. "Yesterday night?" Kousei repeated, "You gave the ticket to your-"

Eyes squeezed shut, Kouichi turned around and nodded, a pained expression on his face. _She's not my girlfriend_, he thought, so badly wanting to say it. His mouth opened several times before he finally said, "I...a friend dropped me off. He...has connections." Nervously, Kouichi opened his eyes, trying to ignore the pounding of his heart.

"I think we need to have a nice, long, _way_ overdue, half-family talk," Kouji interrupted. He didn't have to look at anyone to know what they were thinking.

_It's about time we fixed things up_.

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"That makes no sense," Kouichi uttered in disbelief, eyes betraying his confusion, worry, and above all, his anger.

Quietly, Kouji nodded, his eyes focused on the table lamp to his right. The older twin stood up and let out a sigh. "What are you doing?" interrupted Kouji as he switched his focus from the lamp to his twin.

The completely solemn look on his brother's face had Kouji worried. With some difficulty, Kouichi said, "You see...I came here in such a hurry that..."

Kouji twitched. _Hurry up and spit it out!_ Patience had never been his strong suit.

Taking a deep breath Kouichi listed, "I forgot my clothes, my toothbrush, money, Kako has my jacket and my hat, and...no, I have _that_." He stopped to shake the confusion out of his head. "Oh, and I forgot to tell anyone other than Mom, which means one very angry brother of Kako's will be snapping at me for missing practice. I doubt they'll notice," Kouichi snorted. The boy suddenly became aware of the other two presences in the room. Uncomfortably, he took a seat again.

Taking this opportunity as a way out of the house, Kouji stood up and cleared his throat. Looking at his brother with a piercing gaze, he declared out loud, "Yes, of _course_. We ought to get some clothes." The bandana boy realized he sounded utterly robotic, but didn't care. Kouji yanked his brother to his feet and dragged him out the door. "I've got money, we'll be out past lunch, see you then, bye!" he yelled as they walked out the door.

Kousei and Satomi exchanged confused and slightly looks.

"Kousei," the woman started, about to stand up.

Mr. Minamoto shook his head. "I think...I think this is something we shouldn't interfere with. If I know Kouji, and although I should, I wonder-" For a moment, he stopped, trying to get the words out. "All I can say is that they want us to stay out of this," Kousei told his wife at last, rising to his feet. "And I think it would be best if I called Tomoko."

_Children._ Satomi shook her head with a small smile on her face. Her thoughts began whirling towards her husband's ex-wife. _I wonder how it must be for her...away from her two sons_, thought Satomi. Her eyes slipped shut, and she felt as if she lost connection with the world. _Her sons...I wonder how it must have felt like to have been with them...to have borne them_...

Countless times, she had wondered why Kouji would not accept her. It made so much sense, and yet she hadn't seen it before her. Her eyes opened. Rising to her feet and gracefully brushing a strand of hair from her vision, Satomi called out, "Kousei, make sure when they come back, they stay. I'm going to make something special for dinner."

Filled with nostalgia from her own childhood, Satomi made her way to the kitchen.

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The twins walked silently along the shoreline, not meeting the other's eyes or saying anything. It was Kouichi who broke the silence first. He sounded guilty when he confessed, "Duskmon's somewhere in the house."

The younger twin rolled his eyes. "I know. If you came here as Velgemon, he'd have to be," Kouji replied matter-of-factly.

Kouichi shrugged, feeling distant from his brother although he was at his side. A painful sensation ran through him. "D-...did someone really lie about that?" he asked in a whisper.

"Yes." Stopping in his tracks, Kouji looked at his brother. Emotions flooded him and pushed him past his limit, but they wouldn't let up. "Kouichi," he found himself choking. After Kouji realized he couldn't get the words out, he shut his eyes and drew several quick, long breaths. "Kouichi," he repeated, opening his eyes, "why did you come here?"

"Duskmon," Kouichi whispered. "I'm not sure of the real reason, Kouji. Duskmon wanted me to, but a part of me was worried about you two. N-no, not that I didn't trust you!" he blurted aloud, turning his body to face his brother with a pained expression on his face. His eyes began to sting. Kouichi quickly lifted an arm to wipe his eyes, but dropped it a second later as they came spilling out. He felt weak, hopeless, stuck in the dark.

Surprised at his brother, Kouji lapsed into silence, watching as Kouichi cried silently, his body shaking. "Why-" started the bandana boy.

Furiously, Kouichi shook his head. "I _trust_ you. I trust you, Kouji. But that means that I can't. I trust you with Kako, but I can't...I can't trust you," he cried, kicking the sand in front of him before storming away.

The younger twin was far more shocked than he had initially been. _Kouichi, what's with you?_ He ran after Kouichi, walking after the boy in a quick pace, making sure not to fall behind. Kouji was far too determined not to discover the reason of the sudden outburst. Sure, things had been emotionally shaky, but Kouichi had never been one to break out like that.

"Where's Kako?" Kouichi suddenly asked. He looked over his shoulder with a blank gaze. No tears remained on his face.

Kouji lifted a hand to his forehead. _What is this? One moment he's having a breakdown, the next he's perfectly fine_. It irritated the younger boy, but Kouji figured it had something to do with the incident before the zoo. He swallowed a smile when he realized, _Kouichi's like a zoo himself_.

The loud rush of the waves up the beach and the chatter of the people around completely drowned out any other noise. "I'm right here, why?" asked a girl, popping up from behind Kouji.

The bandana boy nearly died of a heart attack. To make matters worse, Piximon flew above his head and declared, "You're supposed to be training! Never fear! Piximon's special training regime can be put into action instead. Yup, yup!"

Stumbling forward, Kouji yelped. it took a while for him to get his bearings to prevent himself from falling into the sand. "You!" he shouted furiously, pointing at Kako, then Piximon.

Kako smiled pleasantly in return before averting her gaze to Kouichi. "Anyway, what's up?" she asked, arms outstretched for Piximon to come back. "Piximon, get back here. You're too obvious." The pink digimon returned to Kako and the girl laughed.

A flicker of emotion ran through Kouichi's eyes. "My jacket and my hat."

Kako fell silent.

"Kako," Kouichi growled. His eyes narrowed onto her in an almost menacing manner.

Turning slightly pink, Kako opened her mouth, ready with an explanation. Before she could say a word, she turned around and shut her eyes.

Ryuusei, surfboard in hand, stood in front of Kako, dripping wet and grinning. "Kako! Hey, I f-wait...he multiplied?" His gaze shifted to the twins, both of whom were glaring coldly at him, Kouji out of hatred and Kouichi out of annoyance. "They really look alike."

"That's an insult!" Kouichi snapped. Twitching, he turned to Kako and asked, "Kako, could you _please_ give me my jacket and my hat?" His voice lowered out of the fear he was being too loud.

The girl opened her eyes and looked at the sand in embarrassment. "Y-yeah...it's in my backpack," she mumbled, slinging the said item off her back and to the sand. She kneeled down and opened it. After a few seconds of staring at it somewhat brokenly, Kako pulled the jacket out of the bag and threw it to Kouichi. Any sign of a smile had disappeared from her face.

Letting out a sigh and smiling somewhat, Kouichi put on his jacket, taking his D-Tector from his pant pocket and placing it in his jacket pocket. He held out a hand, clearing his throat when Kako returned a perfectly innocent face. "My _hat_," he told her, walking over and snatching the backpack from in front of her. Kouichi lifted it up and sifted through, immediately reddening.

Seeing this reaction, Kouji ran over. "I wanna see!" he snapped, trying to peek over his brother's shoulder.

Quickly, Kouichi grabbed his hat and tossed the bag back to Kako. "_Don't_ open it in front of anyone," he told her, adjusting his hat on his head. "Great, now I feel normal again!" Kouichi froze at the sound of sniffling. He swallowed and turned his head to Kako, who was crying openly. "N-no-"

Sobbing out loud, Kako cried, "YOU'RE SUCH A JERK, KOUICHI!"

"Ack! No! Kako, please don't cry! NO! Come on, Kako," the boy begged, racing to her side and falling down to his knees in front of her. Eventually, when her cries quieted down, Kouichi let out a groan and lay down on the sand. "You," he mumbled, lazily raising a hand and pointing to Ryuusei. "Who are you?" The hand dropped down to shield his eyes from the sun.

The two boys locked eyes as if they were studying each other. Finally, Ryuusei shut his eyes. "Ryuusei Egawa," he introduced himself, brushing his blond hair back. "You are...?"

Kouichi took his time before answering. His eyes were still glued onto the boy. "Kouichi Kimura," he replied softly, rising to his feet and brushing the sand off himself. "And you know Kouji." As he said his brother's name, Kouichi looked in the younger twin's direction, finding Kouji edging towards Kako's backpack. In a swift movement, Kouichi yanked the backpack out of his brother's reach. "NO," he growled. Looking in Kako's direction, he murmured, "I need to talk to Kako alone, so...if you'd two excuse us..."

In the next few moments that passed, Kouji found Kako stand up and race off with his brother. The only thing on his mind was the backpack. _What's in it that Kouichi doesn't want me to see...? Could it b-ew, Kouji, what are you thinking? What _are_ you thinking?_ Kouji shook his head out of confusion and looked at Ryuusei, eyes focused in a piercing glare when the boy took a step forward. "Don't think about bugging them, Surfer boy," he warned. There was a smirk on Kouji's face. _Show no fear...show no fear. Oh, yeah, other than the fact that we're on his terrain, there's n-wait...what's Piximon doing here?_ Irritably, Kouji picked the digimon up off the sand. _Of course_. _Kouichi's playing bodyguard_.

Ryu snorted and taunted, "What? Afraid your big brother'll beat you up if you don't keep me here? Poor baby bandana brain."

All control Kouji had snapped. "_Kouichi_ can't beat me. I'm no baby, you lousy excuse for a younger brother. Don't you know? Kako's going out with Kouichi, and you aren't getting in their way because _I_ say so. If Kouichi has a say in this-" Kouji paused and rolled his eyes. _If he had a say in anything, that would be the end of all relationships he had with anyone in the world_. "The point is, I don't care what Kouichi says, you aren't getting in between!" he shouted, annoyed more with himself than Ryuusei.

There was a smirk on Ryu's face, one that reminded Kouji greatly of Kanaye. Silence fell between them, and Kouji reverted from his annoyance to a calm, collected mind. _Why?_ He began to wonder, _Why don't I trust him? I trust his brother, but I can't trust him. Why?_ Desperate for an answer, Kouji asked, "You have a sister?"

"Nope. Just Ichiro. You know, I get the feeling that your brother's a lot nicer than you are. Later, loser," Ryuusei snorted, waving casually before heading for the waves with his surfboard.

The lack of understanding annoyed Kouji greatly. Cursing loudly and ignoring any stares he received, the bandana boy raced towards the house.

-------------------------------------

"I'm really sorry for making you cry," Kouichi murmured, looking down at the sand below his feet. He ascended the three steps it took to get into the inn, taking a look behind him. "Really..."

Kako laughed lightly, taking her backpack from him. "Idiot," she scolded, "I was acting. Ryu's just...I don't know. He's just way too close for comfort, and besides, I knew you'd do that." Walking to the front desk, she smiled up at Ichiro. "Hey, do you have a meeting room or something that's empty that no one will interrupt us in?" Kako asked the young man.

With an eyebrow raised, Ichiro gazed down at her somewhat astounded. "Wow...you really are Hideki's sister! Kako, where's your innocence?" the boy demanded.

Reddening past crimson, Kouichi edged away from the two as far as possible without having to run out the door. He quietly took a seat in one of the nearby chairs, trying to deal with the heart attack that had been dealt to him. Kako shrieked, "Ichiro! Stop acting like Hideki! That's something he would say!" Angrily, she reached over the counter to take a swipe at him, but Ichiro jumped back.

"Actually," he commented, "Hideki called this morning. Yeah...around five. Called me _just_ as I was coming to work. He said he wants you to call him back. As for rooms, as long as you don't-" Ichiro stopped, noticing Kako's annoyed glare. "Well, anyway, follow me," laughed the young man, leading the two to a meeting room.

After Ichiro left, Kako leaned against the door and sighed. Kouichi headed for the nearest window, watching the sky absentmindedly. "Ogata's here," Kako murmured.

Kouichi's gaze turned to the girl, but nothing else happened.

"It's kind of strange when you think about it. Ogata, my grandpa, your dad...Kouji not receiving Lobomon or his D-Tector yet...none of it adds up, Kouichi. You know something, don't you?" Kako asked.

Eyes slipping shut, Kouichi murmured, "Just wait a bit longer." A silence that lasted about a minute came between them. After it passed, Kouichi walked up to Kako and looked her straight in the eye. "I don't know that much. That...that book I gave you, you didn't open it yet, did you?" he asked in an anxious tone. Kako shook her head. "Good. Kako, you have to read it. Now. I'll wait for you outside, okay. I just...I just don't want you to read it with me around. And don't tell Kouji...please...I'll explain after, but please, don't-" Noticing his voice was cracking, Kouichi stopped and drew a deep breath. "Just...read it now. And don't tell me anything. I'll talk to you after," he mumbled, gently pushing her to the side and walking out of the room.

Stunned, Kako sank down against the now closed door and gazed at her backpack. _What...?_ Hesitantly, she reached for it and pulled out the book. The knowledge that nothing would ever be the same after she opened it lingered in her mind even after she opened it.

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A/N-

.:victory dance:. I'm disappointed in this chapter! Advice is nice. I have a habit of making short, stupid rhymes today. Guess what? I'M NEAR THE END! Now instead of talking about the future, I will merely state that I meant to have this up a lot earlier!

Because every day is the end of the world, I THANK YOU ALL WHO REVIEWED-

**GemmaniGirl, Winter's Light**

Writing isn't the same if you don't have anyone to read.

Review or PM or Flame.


	24. Donna Ni Hanarete Itemo

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Donna Ni Hanarete Itemo

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He began to pick up his pace, not daring to turn around or even send a single glance behind his shoulder. _Why...? After all those threats, why didn't she tell?_ The thought irked him, but all he could do for the moment was walk. He would walk until he reached home, and he would head straight to his room after locking the door. He would fall asleep until the nightmare ended.

Even if he hadn't looked behind him, Hideki could feel her presence there. Like a heavy perfume, it lingered in the air, waiting to settle down and seep it's way through other places. It was purely stubborn.

It even called for him to stop.

He wanted to stop. He wanted to stop, turn around, break down and cry. He wanted to be someone else. He wanted to just scream. He wanted her to leave him for good. Not just to _leave_; that wasn't enough. Hideki wanted her gone. Forgotten, unknown, completely erased from his memory.

"H-Hideki!" Rai yelled, now running to catch up to him.

His eyes narrowed crossly on the ground. It wasn't moving anymore. He wasn't moving anymore.

_Why can't I move_?

Loud footsteps stopped behind him, and harsh breathing could be heard. "Wh-why...?" Rai asked, gasping before erupting into a series of short-lived dry coughs.

Hideki could feel his blood boil and yet he was happy. _Just tell her_, he thought to himself. Turning around, he opened his mouth, ready to spew a bunch of lies her way. If it would save them both the pain, he would say it all. The words stopped at his throat, and Hideki closed him mouth. His eyes were glued to Rai's, and the words he spoke were much different than he imagined.

"I want to forget you," Hideki whispered. They broke eye contact and his eyes lowered to the ground. "I want to, but no matter how hard I try...you're so close to me, Rai. I can feel you...and you aren't even with me. I don't care about the future, that's to come. I want...I don't want..." The next few words were incoherent mumblings as there was an internal fight inside Hideki. "Rai, I don't want to feel you but not have you by me. I'd rather forget you," he finally said. His senses felt numbed and his emotions were a whirling mass ready to drive him into a wall.

He left her speechless, gazing up at him with wide eyes. Rai took a step back and Hideki couldn't be sure if it was intentional or not; he had taken a step forward himself. In a low murmur, Rai told him, "Hideki...I...I want you to forget me." It was almost inaudible, but Hideki caught every word as if she had been talking normally. "But," she continued, stepping forward and adjusting her head so she could meet his eyes, "since we both know it's fairly impossible, I propose...uh..."

Confusion filled Hideki's eyes before it was soon replaced by amusement. Chuckling, he leaned against the glass wall of the building to his right. "So," he asked, arms folding across his chest, "weekly meetings?" Grinning, Hideki rose an eyebrow and waited for her confirmation.

Letting out an annoyed growl, Rai snapped, "You're unbearable. Why do I get the feeling that-oh never mind, why am I asking? Yes, we'll meet once aday and _only_ for the sake of Kako. I don't want her to worry. As for you yourself..." Giving him an overly sweet smile, she said, "I couldn't care a bit." Lifting a hand in a quick wave, Rai turned around and walked off, getting the feeling she was being watched.

As uncomfortable as he was amused, Hideki shook his head and continued in the direction of home. The nap could wait; a long overdue call to Ichiro awaited. Or maybe he would sleep and call Ichiro later. Either way, he had to admit, though, Izumi's plans worked quite well.

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Tomoki gazed at his computer, eyes wide and straining to keep open. _I have to...what does this say?_ He was ready to tear his hair out.

"Tomoki, you should take a break," Kumamon advised, standing beside the boy.

From his chair in front of the computer, Tomoki replied fiercely, "No! No, I can't! Just...just look at the words I've deciphered, Kumamon! It has to be important!" He pointed to the screen and read off, "'_Ancient evils will arise twice more_. _Darkness and Light will separate_.'" There were only two lines so far, and that was all Tomoki had made out since he had reread the book for the umpteenth time that day.

The digimon let out a sigh and gave up. Bokomon's code was anything but obvious, and the boy still couldn't figure out the pattern. He didn't want help, he didn't want to stop. _He's going to work himself to death_, Kumamon was convinced. _And if he doesn't, it'll be from the lack of food and sleep_. "Go get food," he suddenly commanded the boy.

His eyes were still glued to the computer. "I'm not hungry," Tomoki replied.

"Tomoki, you need brain food, and the only way you'll get any into you is if you eat!" Kumamon told him in an exasperated tone. There was no response. "I'll tell Takuya and the others," he warned the boy. A threatening tone was hard to come up with, but Kumamon managed.

Tomoki turned to the digimon, eyes tearing and red. "Please," he whispered, "don't tell anyone. I've tried, but...I'm failing them, Kumamon...I'm failing them..." Tears fell down his face, and he quickly wiped them away. The boy sniffed, "I've found the names of all ten legendary warriors in there. There's references based on element, but I can't find anything else."

He sounded weak and frail. Kumamon told the boy this and added, "Go get something to eat. I won't tell if you do." As he hoped, Tomoki slowly rose from the chair and walked outside of the room.

A yawn could be heard from the kitchen. Kumamon shook his head. _I'll tell him to sleep after a minute,_ he decided, walking into the kitchen to find Tomoki. There was no one in the kitchen. Instead, curled up on the couch, the boy lay down, eyes shut. _Or...not_. Hiding a smile, Kumamon made his way back to the room and looked over the last page of Bokomon's book. Each character stood out vividly, but held a messy side, obviously quickly scrawled. _Perhaps_, Kumamon mused, _it isn't that Bokomon wrote this but _copied _it from somewhere_. _It's definitely happened before_.

There was a ringing of the phone and Kumamon jumped. He could hear Mrs. Himi answer the call, "Hello? Oh...I'm sorry, Tomoki is asleep right now. Yes...would you like to leave a message?"

_A call?_ Kumamon gazed at the computer, where Tomoki's inbox, moved to a corner, remained open. Curiously, he checked it.

_One new e-mail_. Kumamon found Tomoki's cell phone laying beside Bokomon's book. It had been in silent the entire time. _One missed call_. Kumamon shut his eyes, knowing very well what it meant. _Tomoki will be upset he slept through this all_.

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Ichiro sat down on the stool provided behind the desk, gazing intently at his papers. "Hmm...I smell salt," he said aloud, not looking up.

His younger brother walked in shirtless, brushing the excess water away from his skin. Shrugging, he replied, "Yeah, well..." Ryuusei fell quiet and took a seat on one of the lobby chairs, folding his arms somewhat crossly.

There was an all-knowing grin on Ichiro's face. "I _told_ you," he told his younger brother, "she's taken. Come on, Ryu, don't look so sour because of that." Although Ichiro had only been joking, he knew his brother had taken him to heart.

The younger boy rose to his feet. Angrily, Ryu shouted, "I'm _not_ sour! And I'm not jealous, or annoyed, or mad, or...or anything else you would say! Just shut up, Ichiro!" He scowled and sat back in his seat, looking at a plant with an angry gaze on his face.

Looking up, Ichiro commented, "Get a shirt. And _do_ stop soaking the seat, will you? I'm not paid to clean those. Hey, Mr. A. How's it going?" He turned to his employer and gave a casual wave of his arm before returning to the papers in front of him.

"Did you give him a call?" inquired Mr. Aizawa, adjusting his sleeves.

Ichiro gave an affirmative nod. "Yep and he's asleep. Kako and her boyfriend are in one of the meeting rooms," he said, giving Ryuusei a nasty grin. "I don't know where the other kid is. Hideki's obviously asleep. That is to say, he should be by now. I don't really know. Hideki's strange like that." A skeptical look appeared on Ichiro's face as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Scowling, Ryuusei intensified his glare. To the older man, he muttered, "Hey, Mr. A." It was more forced and conditioned than because the boy wanted to.

Mr. Aizawa chuckled, obviously understanding what was going through the boy's mind. Letting out a heavy sigh, he walked over behind the counter, squatting down. His eyes were narrowed on a locked cupboard.

"Sir...?" Ichiro called out in a hesitant voice. He shifted uncomfortably, unsure of what to think. "Shall I go get Kako...?"

Surprised, the old man looked up at Ichiro. Under his breath, he mumbled, "No...no, that's fine. Ichiro, make sure I never open this." After his rather abrupt instruction, Mr. Aizawa exited the inn.

"Ooookay...hey-Ryuusei Egawa get back here!" Ichiro shouted, making a start for his younger brother. The boy had made his way for the meeting rooms. Cursing aloud, Ichiro placed a hand on his forehead. "I hate getting old."

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'_The property of Marise Saito_.

'_Years, months, days...hours...?_ _Minutes?_ _Seconds?_ _All are so unimportant_. _But you've grown_.'

Kako frowned, trying to understand the meaning of what was written. _One line on one page? What a loser...killing a notebook with just _lines_. He could have at least added more entries on one page. I didn't know Mr. Saito had a relative. Maybe it's his dad_. Interested, she read on, making comments in her head.

In elegant calligraphy, the next page read: '_Harumi Aizawa_.'

The girl nearly cried out in surprise. _Mom? That makes no sense!_ She turned her head to look at the closed door. So badly, she wished ask Kouichi what it all meant.

The next few pages were blank, leaving Kako mystified. Eventually, she came upon pages of actual writing in less than a few seconds. "'_Life is a chessboard, they say. You have to play wisely to make it across. If you don't play wisely, you die an early life. If you get reckless, you die an early life_.' I like that...I should use it in one of my essays!" Kako laughed quietly. She continued to read the remainder of the entry silently, and discovered it was longer than most.

'_Were we too reckless, Harumi? I'm so sorry_..._so sorry for not being there for you_. _For them. I wish I could have, but you know_..._what_..._I_..._I'm sorry_.

'_Harumi...you always said you would let go_. _We decided this would be best for them, but is it?_ _I only hope, despite the fact that he may have lost his wings, Hideki does not make the same mistake_.

'_I can sense the new wings_. _It's slow, Harumi, but they're forming_. _He's trying them, slowly, that boy_..._If we can get him to reach his potential, perhaps we will get what we want_. _You told me to not use him, didn't you?_ _I'm sorry_. _I see no other way_. _The Warrior of Darkness is a powerful ally, one I refuse to simply pass the chance on_. _If their friendship is at stake_..._You know as well as I that is not the case_. _I am positive Kako can find someone better_.

'_Forgive me, Harumi_. _I'll visit you soon_.'

Kako let out a gasp, rereading the entry. In a murmur, she repeated, "'_Warrior of Darkness_.' What friendship? Is this nut case talking about Kouichi? And how does he know me? How does he know Mom?" Furiously, she turned the page. Although the turn would have ripped a page out of a normal book, these pages seemed to hold on, unwilling to tear.

The next entry was far longer than the one prior to it, and Kako found it after merely turning one page. It interested her greatly, but more questions erupted from it.

'_The Shadow System_:

'_This system is far more complex than our normal world can comprehend_. _Where a normal planet would just _exist_, ours holds countless parallel dimensions_. _It exists along with these several other worlds, and the beings on one world are parallel to another_. _One being in our world has a parallel being on each dimension, thereby creating his own essence_. _Were one of these beings to disappear from his parallel_, _part of him would cease to exist_. _This would range from an emotion to something far more severe, such as lack of sanity or an arm_. _He may cease to exist on this world, in one possibility_. _This system is made of many unknown dimensions, and to many rules, we are left cluelessly in the shadows_. _Thus, the name, _"Shadow System."

'_For one to break this system, one would be required to supposedly _"undo" _it from its roots, much like a weed_. _And just like a weed, it rapidly draws dimensions in_. _The very base of the _Shadow System _lies in the Digital dimension_. _This dimension is definitely one of the more important of the many dimensions taken in by the _Shadow System. _It is said that in the ancient times of this Digital dimension _(_also called the _Digital World), _when Apocalymon was destroyed, a blanket of darkness covered his body and took him to the core of the _Digital World. _This blanket of darkness is more commonly known as _Chaos, _and is key to linking the dimensions together_. Chaos_ is the key substance of the_ Shadow System, _but if taken out, the _Digital World_ will cease to exist_.

'_There is no way to remove the_ Chaos _without in any way disturbing the normal means of living_. _Only a select few will ever know the existence of the _Chaos_, and if it is removed, only a select few will remember its removal_. _If the inhabitants of the _Digital World_ will approve, the _Chaos _can be removed at the loss of the world itself_.

'_No price is too small to pay_.'

"_Chaos_," Kako whispered, shutting the diary and placing it in her bag. She shivered at the name, trying to imagine what it looked like. "To remove it...to destroy the Digital World..." When he had said no price was too small to pay, Kako greatly agreed. _I wonder_, she thought, _if this Marise guy felt the same way_. Her hand fell upon the doorknob, and with great difficulty twisted it open. Kako took a step forward and nearly fell.

Kouichi whirled around and grabbed a hold of her hand, steadying her as she stumbled forward. "H-hey..." he mumbled, reddening. "What happened?"

Trembling, Kako tried to ignore the tears that stung her eyes. She tried to explain and stuttered, "I..._Chaos_...I...I don't want to _destroy_ the world!" Trying not to cry, Kako stepped forward again, resting her head on his shoulder. Her breath steadied for a few seconds before breaking into hiccups and sobs.

Confused and startled, Kouichi awkwardly placed a hand on her back. "Um...K-Kako, I don't think you could even if you wanted to," he told her honestly, prying her off of himself by pushing gently on her shoulders. When her tear filled eyes met his, he smiled warmly and asked her, "Do you want to tell me what it said?" As curious as he was, the last thing Kouichi wanted to do was push her to explain.

Kako had now collected herself and was glaring at Kouichi. Giving him a look that said, 'I'll be asking the questions,' she demanded, "Who _is_ this Marise guy, anyway? Hideki explained the whole system to me in bits and pieces, but the guy practically wrote an essay on it! And how'd you get his diary? And how does he know my _mom_?" The last part, she practically screamed.

"How about we talk about this over some food?" Kouichi suggested with a laugh. He took Kako's hand in his and yanked her (with great difficulty) towards the inn's exit.

There was a dull thud of footsteps and a blond haired boy stood in front of them, dripping wet. "Kak-...oh...hey..." Ryuusei mumbled as he ran by. His eyes lay on their hands, glaring distastefully.

Noticing this, Kouichi withdrew his hand as if it had been in boiling water. "U-uh..." he stuttered, feeling his cheeks warm up. _What did I get myself into?_ His mouth opened, but no words came out.

Try as he might, Ryu simply could get angry at the other boy. He walked up to Kouichi, observant eyes searching for a fault he could use as a scapegoat. A hint of disgust in his eyes, a smirk, _anything_ would work. But there wasn't a single thing. Finally, Ryu turned to Kako and smiled. "Say, if you would give us some time to talk...?" he inquired politely. A flash of annoyance ran through his eyes when Kako glared at him. He glared in return and watched as she reluctantly stalked off.

There wasn't a hint of confusion on Kouichi's face now. Turning around and walking further away from Kako, he murmured, "You like her?" It was more a statement than a question.

Ryu chuckled darkly, "You're good. How long have you been putting up this act?" He followed Kouichi into the room and shut the door, making sure to lock it.

"No act. Just takes time to read a person," Kouichi returned smoothly. He made his way towards the window again, opening it this time and letting the cool breeze enter the room.

The blond boy's eyes narrowed on Kouichi. Instead of causing an uncomfortable feeling in the air to cause the boy to look at him, Ryu realized Kouichi was completely unaffected. There was a new level of respect established between them. "Right," he replied, waving a hand in Kouichi's direction. "Are you planning to hurt her?"

Immediately, Kouichi whipped his head in Ryuusei's direction, focused in a piercing glare. "I could ask the same about you," he returned hotly.

The two exchanged glares for several seconds before Ryuusei shook his head. "I didn't mean it like that," he said, taking a seat in the nearest chair, at the head of the table. It wasn't to explain himself, it was just due to a lack of things to say. "I meant are you just with her for...for some stupid reason, you know." The words struggled to come out. Now that he was actually talking to Kouichi, Ryu wasn't sure how to phrase his questions.

An amused smile played on Kouichi's lips. "With Kako? For a stupid reason? If by stupid reason you mean getting tortured, yeah...I'm with her for a stupid reason," he laughed, his eyes slipping shut. Kouichi let out a sigh.

A mix of emotions came over Ryuusei. His mouth opened and closed several times before, defeated, he stood up and slammed his fist on the table. "You _better_ take care of her!" he snapped.

In the process of closing the window, Kouichi nearly lost a finger. "Why are you making it sound like we're getting _married_?" Kouichi whined. "We aren't even really going out!" Immediately, he wondered if he should have said that. The last thing he wanted to do was give Kako up, but he didn't find any reason not to tell Ryu that. "Say, how long have you known her?" he asked out of interest, gaze peeling away from the window with reluctance. There was a small smile on Kouichi's face, one out of habit.

"A while," Ryu answered. Try as he might to be unhappy, all he could do was smile. It wasn't even a despaired, sad smile. It was a happy smile. _Why,_ he wondered, _why do I feel happy?_ Irritated with himself, Ryuusei drew a breath and looked at the direction of the door that had begun to creak slightly.

Kouichi walked towards the door, gazing up at the ceiling absentmindedly. Letting out a yawn, one hand flew to cover his mouth while the other rested on the doorknob, 'accidentally' pulling it forward.

Kako stumbled into the room, blinking innocently. Picking herself up from the floor, she waved to Kouichi. "Wow, I must have gotten lost! Guess I'm going around in circles!" she exclaimed, sweeping the room with her eyes.

An annoyed scowl was on Kouichi's face. "You don't think I can take care of myself!" he accused, pointing a finger at her.

"Not true!" Kako tried to insist, but the accusing look on Kouichi's face forced her to succumb. "OKAY, so I _don't_ trust you! I can't be sure you're as bad as Kouji! I thought about it and came to the conclusion that there would be a fight in the room if you were, so I decided to check up on you two."

"And eavesdrop," Ryuusei added, leaning back in the chair and lifting his feet up on the table.

"And eavesdr-HEY!" Kako shouted, reddening considerably.

Laughing, Kouichi pushed her out the door. To Kako, he murmured, "One sec. I'll meet you at the front." He made sure she left before turning to Ryuusei. "It's been nice talking to you, Egawa. I can't say you like me very much, but I'd rather be on good terms than not," he told the boy, walking over and extending a hand.

For the longest time, Ryu tried to ignore it. Finally, he sighed and shook his head. It was inevitable, he realized. Ryu took Kouichi's hand firmly with both feet now planted on the ground. As he did this, he told the boy, "Well, Kimura, we may not be _friends_, but we aren't enemies either. See ya around."

Hiding a smile, Kouichi raced out of the room. For some reason, although he felt he knew why, he felt as if he had known Ryu all this time.

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"You're all against me," Piximon snapped, trying to wriggle out of his ropes. Kouji had tied him to a chair facing far away from the laptop screen. "What are you doing? It better not be about me!" Piximon loosened a hand and stretched it in the direction of his staff.

Kouji immediately snatched the staff away, glaring at the digimon. "I'll _untie_ you if you _shut up and stay away from my laptop_," he growled. He made sure to put the staff out of reach. After all, he didn't have Lobomon; why give Piximon an advantage during a fight.

The pink digimon seemed to understand this and nodded, waiting to be untied. Kouji quickly undid the rope and returned to sitting down in front of his laptop and staring thoughtfully at the screen. The bandana boy's fingers tapped on the table. Another hand supported his head, which was tilted to the side. Finally, Kouji sat up straight. Both hands made for the keyboard and he began typing furiously.

Piximon sat far away from the laptop with his back to the screen. _What's he doing? He doesn't want me to see,_ the digimon observed, feeling helpless without his staff. _I don't trust him. He should have gotten Lobomon by now, shouldn't he have? He _must_ be_..._Oh, Kako would kill me for thinking that_.

Kouji heard the troubled growl that escaped Piximon. "You really should stop thinking so much," he told the digimon. _I should really listen to my own advice_. He pulled away from the computer and motioned Piximon over. "Can you make this out?" he inquired, gesturing in the direction of the screen.

Not sure if the boy just wanted Piximon to stop thinking he was doing something illegal or if it was a sincere question, the digimon fluttered over, hovering just above the keyboard and pressing his nose against the screen. He finally moved back to rest on Kouji's head. "Mmm...it's a ruin from the Digital World. How'd you find a picture of that?" Piximon carefully masked the accusing voice with a tone of curiosity. Nevertheless, he was sure the bandana boy could take the hint.

"You'd be surprised," Kouji returned with a wry smile. "The Digital World shares a lot more in common with the Real World than just a gate and parallel inhabitants." He let out a sigh and leaned back in his chair. "Don't tell anyone. So, what does it say? I can't make out a word," he told the digimon.

_How much should I say?_ Piximon informed Kouji with great reluctance, "It's a prophecy. A lot of the digimon hoped it wouldn't come to pass, but with all the chaos going around in both worlds, it's coming..." He was careful not to volunteer any more information than necessary. _I wonder if Marise knows he has this picture_, Kouji thought.

_He's smart_, Kouji realized, deciding it was time to move up a level in the game. Innocently, he asked Piximon, "What's the prophecy about?" There was a look of pure innocence on Kouji's face, but his eyes held no emotion. He tilted his head back, trying to see Piximon's face.

"Not really sure. It's in an ancient text. I can't read it." It was only half a lie. Piximon knew the prophecy by heart, as did most digimon. And, just like most digimon, he couldn't remember a great deal of the ancient text.

Standing up and shutting the laptop, Kouji made his way out of his room. "We should go check on those two, huh?" he asked the digimon. Piximon flew off Kouji's head to fly just ahead of the boy as they walked out the door. Taking note of the affirmative nod, Kouji smiled slightly. They may not have trusted each other, but their common goal was obvious.

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Shinya sat in front of the computer, eyes focused unblinkingly on the screen. He wasn't sure what he was doing; he was typing meaningless symbols into documents he didn't know the computer had. He couldn't even stop, as badly as he wanted to.

_It's just a dream_, something told him. _You're asleep. You're tired. Let me take over_...

Trying to fight the calming presence, Shinya screamed. His mouth never opened. No sound came out. _Why_, he thought desperately, _why can't I control myself?_ Just when he thought the shadows were swallowing him, a light turned on, and Shinya snapped back into reality. He was staring at the computer screen, but nothing was open. Wide-eyed and confused, he looked to the goggle boy at the doorway, who yawned sleepily.

"Shinya, what are you doing? It's..." Takuya trailed off and looked at the clock. "Four eighty-two in the morning..." He yawned again.

Tears flowed freely down Shinya's face, though Takuya mistook them as tears because Shinya wasn't used to the bright light. "I-It's four twenty-eight, Takuya," the younger boy corrected timidly. "I...I'm scared..."

That woke the older boy up with a start. Frowning and worried, Takuya ran towards his brother to check his temperature. It was completely unlike Shinya to confess something like that. Deciding Shinya didn't have a fever, Takuya murmured, "You've been acting kind of strange all week, Shinya...but you aren't sick. Are you-" He stopped when he caught the look on Shinya's face. "Oh...digimon, Shinya..." Trying not to panic, Takuya looked around the room. Finally, he pulled Shinya onto his feet and led the younger boy to the bed.

"N-no! Takuya, I-" Shinya started, frantically grabbing Takuya's wrist as the goggle boy pushed him down on the bed and pulled the covers over him.

Covering Shinya's mouth, Takuya told his brother gently, "I'll be right here, okay? You go to sleep, the light will be on, and I'll be sitting right here watching you." There was a hard-set look on Takuya's face, and no hint of a lie anywhere.

The younger boy calmed down somewhat, reluctantly relaxing. "But you need to sleep," insisted Shinya, trying to stay awake as well.

Takuya just grinned. "Go to sleep, krill. You need it," he told the boy, pulling up the seat in front of the computer beside the bed and watching his brother. Minutes later, Shinya lay asleep, a peaceful look on his face. The older Kanbara sent a glance in the direction of the computer. _I'll move Shinya to my room tomorrow,_ he decided. _There's something fishy going on here...and I bet it isn't because we had fish tonight_. One hand reached for the phone to remind Takuya that he had plans to make.

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A/N-

Big improvement from last chapter. I want to write more about the diary! Clarifying it (and it's the third time it's been explained, I think) is hard work. However, Marise's version is correct. I'm guessing twenty more chapters. Shinya's role is coming into play!

Thank you very much for the reviews-**Gemmani Girl, Winter's Light**

Review or PM or Flame!


	25. False Alarm

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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False Alarm

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It was almost complete. By seven o' six that morning, it would all be complete. His two chosen workers, however unwilling, would establish the secure connection. By seven o' six that morning, it would all be complete.

Kanaye sat down in front of the computer, eyeing the clock eagerly. _Only a few more hours_, he thought, feeling a sadistic joy arise from the thought. Destruction, chaos, utter oblivion...he longed for it. "Ai, are you ready?" he asked, turning to his female companion.

Letting out an annoyed sigh, Ai placed her hands on her hips. "I get who Ranamon, Arbormon and Mercurymon are, but Grumblemon? He _totally_ escapes me," she confessed, walking over to him and gazing at the clock. Ai draped her hands over his shoulders. "You know, for the devil, you can be pretty angelic sometimes. It really makes me sick," the girl told him, giggling slightly.

He chuckled in turn, shutting his eyes and relaxing. Kanaye leaned back in his chair and told her, "You're true to your essence, Ai. You really should take over for me." He was about to secure her arms in place when she pulled away. Startled, Kanaye turned to Ai, a puzzled look on his face. "What did I do now?"

"I'm serious. You're...oh, great, for all we know _you_ could be the next Seraphimon!" Ai muttered with complete disgust. She turned away from Kanaye and marched towards the door.

Kanaye frowned. "I may be Devimon, Ai," he told her, "but I refuse to be reduced to an uncivilized barbarian like Lucemon. I have _standards_." The frown deepened when Ai refused to stop. _LadyDevimon_..._such a confusing, jealous digimon_. _Maybe those are her best attacks_, he mused, suppressing the smile that came onto his face at the thought. He rose to his feet.

"Fujitaka, I'm _warning_ you," growled a girl.

A boy snorted. "Give me a break, Naoko. I'm only doing this to beat the idiot up," Fujitaka snapped, walking into Kanaye's room. In an icy voice, he said, "Get her off my back," pointing to a cross Naoko.

The girl glared before looking away. In a haughty voice, she told him, "I'm not talking to you anymore. You're heartless. And you don't even care!"

Kanaye twitched, wishing he didn't have to deal with their insubordinate attitudes after talking with Ai. He had been hoping to relax, but as it seemed out of the question now, Kanaye switched to plan B. "_Both_ of you," he growled, trying not to twitch, "go get ready. We have less than three hours, and you're in _my_ room, interrupting _my_ peace with _your_ bickering. Please, do it in your _own_ room." Under his breath, he added, "Or Ai's."

Pointing to Fujitaka and turning to the vexed boy, Naoko yelled, "Tell him to stop picking on Kako and Kouichi!"

"THE POINT IS TO PICK ON KIMURA!" Kanaye bellowed at the top of his lungs. "We have to get Duskmon and Lowemon out of this battle or it's pointless. We'll lose." Confident that his message made it's way through, Kanaye gestured towards the door. "Go get ready and tell Ai that I'm not apologizing for something as stupid as that," he ordered, eyes flickering menacingly.

Fuming, Naoko stomped out followed by an ecstatic Fujitaka. Kanaye slammed his door shut and leaned against it, hoping to prevent any more interruptions.

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"This is early."

"I really couldn't sleep."

He stood there in an awkward silence and motioned for her to come in. Rai quietly stepped in, walking past Hideki without a glance. "You feel it to?" he asked, hoping for a decent conversation.

"Yes," she answered. "We don't have as much time as we planned, I guess."

There was a lop-sided grin on Hideki's face. "Well, we screwed up, didn't we?" Hideki asked. He shut the door, watched as Rai sat down, then walked into the kitchen. "You hungry?"

Rai was silent until Hideki came out again. He placed the bowl of popcorn down on the table, disappeared into the kitchen and later reappeared holding two cups filled with water. "Soda and popcorn don't go together. Neither do water and popcorn..." he muttered to himself. Rai watched Hideki go into the kitchen once more, waiting a few more minutes before he came out empty-handed. "Okay, Rai, clue me in here. What do you want to eat? I can't read your mind like you can read mine!" he told her desperately.

To her own amazement, Rai replied, "I don't want anything to eat." Normally she was more of the type to eat and ignore important manners, despite her reputation as a work-a-holic. Yet for some reason, all traces of an appetite left her.

Startled, Hideki nodded and sat down beside her on the couch, gazing absentmindedly out the glass door that led to the back. "Well..."

"It's...so close," Rai murmured, shutting her eyes and falling back on the couch. "I...I was sure we'd have a bit more time...I wanted more time...there was...there was supposed to be another week," she whispered.

Hideki smiled a small, sad smile. He leaned back on the couch, enjoying the silence that overcame them. He told her softly, "Well...like they say. A-" He stopped when he saw Rai turn to face him. Even more startling, he found himself pushed back, Rai's hand covering his mouth.

In a firm voice, she replied, "No, I don't _care_ about commitments or jobs or all that. I hate being told that all this was premeditated. It wasn't. It isn't fair, Hideki."

It took several minutes before Hideki answered. He laughed lightly, shutting his eyes and pushing himself back until he was laid down on the couch fully, Rai resting on top of him and blushing madly. "You sound like Kako," he commented.

Rolling her eyes, Rai pushed away and stood up, gazing down at Hideki. "Do you...really think...?"

"Nope."

She was surprised. "No?"

Hideki chuckled, "They forgot one little thing. It'll take them a while. Probably until after they get back. Though I've got a sneaking suspicion it'll be when they come back." At that comment, he opened one eye. "Are you just going to stand there."

"We...have...time?"

"From what I see, yep. Despite the sense of impending doom."

"We have time," Rai repeated to herself softly. Her eyes slipped shut and she fell back onto the couch with a relieved sigh. "We have time, Hideki," she murmured aloud.

Smiling softly, Hideki sat up and wrapped his arms around Rai. "I guess...we always will."

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Ritsuo let out a curse and ran up the stairs, dashing into the room that had just closed its door to the world minutes ago. "Master Kanaye, it isn't working!"

Eyes wide, Kanaye whirled around, doubly annoyed than he had first been. "What?" the boy growled, following Ritsuo downstairs and into the main computer room. "What's this about?" he demanded angrily. He was in no mood to be trifled with a stupid matter such as a low battery or viruses.

Swallowing, Ritsuo told Kanaye, "He's asleep." His eyes quickly squeezed shut in anticipation of Kanaye's screams.

Kanaye remained calm. _Asleep? Why do I deal with idiots?_ Flabbergasted, he motioned towards the large screen. "So have Grumblemon try again!" he snapped. _Idiots_...

"N-no, uh..." Ritsuo opened his eyes and looked around the room nervously. He was completely unsure of how to explain the matter. "H-he's asleep...and he's being watched..." the boy gulped and continued quickly, "by someone _awake_." His eyes flew shut and he dived under the desk.

"_What?_" Kanaye roared, storming towards the keyboard and quickly typing a few things. Eventually, he accessed the View system. A blurred image of Takuya was shown on the screen. The goggle boy was in front of the computer, so Kanaye couldn't be sure what he was doing. He didn't want to know what the boy was doing.

Cursing out loud, Kanaye raced out of the room, and Ritsuo crawled out from underneath the chair. A cell phone was in his hand and he was perfectly calm. "Yes," he murmured quietly. "We've delayed it some. Yes. Yes...I gave him a...a 'wake up' call. Alright. You've got it, Mr-oh, of course. Right. Can't say your name here. Yes, we'll keep him busy until then." Ritsuo ended the call and pocketed his cell phone. Being a quadruple agent these days was so hard...

Especially if you were working for more than four parties.

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"Give...no...n-no, give me a break!" Kouichi shouted as Kako handed him the shirt. "I'm not wearing a...y-you know, let's just narrow the search down to this: no shirts with logos, writing, pictures or anything. Plain shirts, solid colors, okay?" he asked, practically begging her.

Kako let out an exasperated sigh and threw the shirt on top of his head. "Please," she snorted, "Expand your closet!"

"I'm not a girl!"

Kako laughed, "Doesn't matter!" She continued the search.

While she wasn't looking, Kouichi snuck off, quickly placing the shirts Kako had gotten back on the racks and searching himself. _Red shirt, green jacket, where can I-why do I get the feeling there's something_..._there_...? Freezing, Kouichi stiffly turned his head to look over his shoulder.

Kouji waved to his brother, one eyebrow raised. "Hey. Suffering Kako's horrible fashion advice?" Kouji asked him, batting Piximon off his head.

With a snort, Piximon moved onto Kouichi's head. He muttered, "Ungrateful..."

"For what?" Kouichi questioned. He trying to look up at Piximon, but seeing as how the digimon was on his head, it only took him a second to give up and grab the nearest appealing shirt. "Anyway, yes," he said to his brother's question.

The bandana boy chuckled. "You're mighty obvious with Piximon on your head," he told Kouichi. Kouji walked over to aid his brother in the clothes search.

Looking completely innocent, Kouichi pushed aside a few shirts, pretending to be absorbed in the clothes. When Kouji joined him, he stepped behind his brother. "Sorry," Kouichi muttered, yanking his brother's bandana and ponytail holder off and racing away.

Kouji's hand immediately went for his hair. "W-WAIT!" he screamed. _Damn, if the damn idiot wanted me to pose as him I would have done so!_ He cursed silently and, keeping a hold of his hair, looked around for spectators. _No one_. _G_ood. Reluctantly, Kouji placed his hair under his jacket and began to search for his brother.

As soon as Kouji walked away, Kouichi came out of his hiding place from underneath a clothes rack. He guiltily pocketed his brother's belongings and gazed at the clothes he had gotten. Almost a complete replica of his current outfit. _Maybe Kako's right_. _A bit of diversity wouldn't hurt in the wardrobe_, he decided. "I'll go for more green!" Kouichi decided aloud.

Piximon shook his head. _And here I was thinking he was guilty for pulling that prank on his brother_, he thought, hiding a smile. "Brilliant," he congratulated Kouichi.

The boy snorted and grabbed a few more shirts and pants off the rack. "I wish..." he muttered, violently yanking the shirt from the pile it had been placed in, "I didn't..._forget_..._MY STUPID_-" Letting out a yelp, Kouichi dove behind the nearest clothes as Kako turned the corner, looking around with a confused look.

"Damn, and I found this awesome jacket, too," she muttered, scratching the back of her head and gazing disappointedly at the purple jacket in her hand. Kouji walked up to her, an annoyed look on his face. He barely had anytime to say anything before Kako threw the jacket at him. "AHA! There you are! Go put this on!" Kako snapped, pointing in his direction.

Kouji was twitching; it was far past visible. Kako didn't seem to notice. Her back was turned when Kouji screamed, "I DON'T LOOK LIKE KOUICHI, DO I? NO! NO, I DON'T HAVE SHORT HAIR! I'M WEARING BLUE, DAMMIT! BLUE! BLUE JACKET! BLUE, NOT GREEN! I'M NOT A FREAKING CHRISTMAS TREE, I'm...uh...Kouji..." It was a lame finish, the boy realized, but he simply couldn't come up with anything else.

Surprised, Kako turned back around. "My bad. What happened to your bandana?" she asked, completely unaffected by the yelling.

The bandana boy was out of breath. It took a while before he managed to say, "Kouichi...took my bandana...and just had to undo my hair...so this would happen. Your taste...in..." He managed to regain his normal breathing cycle before he continued, "Your taste in clothes stinks, Kako. Sure, it works for you, but...Kouichi doesn't wear _purple_." An apologetic look on his face, Kouji placed the jacket back on the rack.

Rolling her eyes, Kako muttered, "You think you guys could take a joke. It's amusing, okay? So sue me. You guys had fun laughing at me in a dress, didn't you?" She glared at Kouji for the longest time before the bandana boy snapped his fingers.

"Oh yeah! Hahaha!" the boy laughed, "He was blushing like hell!" When Kako reddened and stepped back in surprise, Kouji rose an eyebrow. "You thought he was laughing at you then?" he inquired.

She brought up her hands to hide her face. "I _wish_! I _really_ wish! YOU GUYS ARE ALL PERVERTS!" Kako shrieked.

From behind the row of green shirts, Kouichi sighed. _I wish I wasn't reminded of that_, he thought, taking the sleeve of one of the shirts and examining it. _I'll never get pinched for St. Patrick's day, though, ever again!_ He took the shirt off the rack and gazed at it. "Hey, it's even got a four leaf clover on the shoulder," he commented.

The digimon on Kouichi's head flew down to face the boy. "When did Kako wear a dress?" Piximon asked.

Kouichi froze as Kouji fell silent. "Wait," the bandana boy muttered, "You hear that?"

"Your hair looks funny," Kako muttered, shaking her head. "It's a real good thing you don't keep it down." She was now standing beside him, examining the length of a strand of the boy's hair.

Kouji scowled, "Shut up!"

Laughing, Kako commented, "You should cut your hair! And then you and Kouichi would really look like twins!" She walked up to the rack of green shirts Kouichi hid behind. "Right, _Piximon_?" she asked the digimon, yanking both Piximon and Kouichi out by the ears.

There was a murderous look on Kouji's face. "MY HAIR TIE," he growled, hand held out expectantly in Kouichi's direction.

Chuckling nervously, Kouichi pulled the bandana and hair tie out of his pocket. "Uh...sorry...?" he said in an apologetic voice.

"I'm so sure," Kako and Kouji muttered under their breath. The girl shot both boys a glare and let go of Piximon. Her grip on Kouichi, however, merely tightened. "Let's just hurry up, okay?"

"Okay," Kouichi muttered, wincing at the pain. "J-just...hurry up with the letting go of my ear part."

Kako let go of Kouichi's ear and muttered something as the boy collapsed on the ground, rubbing his ear. With a sigh, Kouji walked up to his brother and helped him up. "Darn, I was hoping that part would go slow," he murmured.

As Kouji redid his ponytail and bandana, Kouichi forced a smile onto his face. _This really hurts, Kouji_, he thought as they walked to the register. _I wish_..._it didn't have to be this way. I'm sorry_.

-------------------------------------

"Just one change of clothes?" Kouji asked skeptically. "Will it last?"

Kouichi nodded. He looked towards the shoreline absentmindedly. "You guys are only spending two more days in Hawaii, right? I use the new clothes tomorrow, wash my current clothes, and then I'm set for the next day," he informed the younger twin.

There was a snort. "If you say so..." muttered the bandana boy.

The older boy smiled. "I say so. Kako, what are you doing? Piximon can't see!" Kouichi exclaimed, averting his attention to Kako. She had placed the straw hat she had bought back at the store on Piximon, whom was now flying blindly, trying his best not to bump into a wall.

Kako slowed her pace until she was walking beside both boys. Turning her head in Kouichi's direction and returning a smile, Kako replied, "If Piximon wants to be the best trainer ever, he's got to train himself, you know. This'll improve his-"

There was a crash, and they all turned to find Piximon on the floor, the straw hat beside him. Shaking her head, Kako ran over to Piximon, picking the digimon up first and then the hat. "Well, scratch that," she murmured.

The twins exchanged looks before shaking their head in exasperation. "How about going out for lunch?" Kouji suggested. He wasn't exactly hungry, but he wasn't in the mood to spend the entire day at the beach again. There was no objection from anyone, and soon they were seated in a small restaurant overlooking the beach.

"It's so pretty," Kako said in awe. They were seated by the window, making it easy for Kako to spot the waves. While she and Piximon admired the waves, Kouji and Kouichi sat opposite of each other, engaged in what seemed to be a staring contest until the menus came.

Kako ordered for the most part, while Kouji ordered a soda and Kouichi politely skipped all thoughts of a meal, saying he'd prefer a glass of water. The entire time consisted mainly of Kako and Piximon devouring the food, Kouji staring at his soda, and Kouichi removing all the ice cubes onto a napkin and watching them melt.

By the time Kako and Piximon finished, all the ice cubes were past finished. "I'm paying," Kouichi announced quickly, bringing his wallet out quickly. Kouji was about to object when the older twin reminded him, "You paid for my clothes. I have more than enough money to pay for lunch."

Pointing to Kako, Kouji argued, "Let me remind you _she_ ate most of the food. What does that have to do with anything?" He sat back in his seat, folded his arms and waited for the response with a smug look on his face.

Smiling, Kouichi replied, "So I'll pay for Kako mostly. That's fine by me."

"Hah...ah-" Kouji stopped before he could continue his comment. _Disturbing_, he thought, making a sour face. "I...really should stop thinking," he muttered.

Kako snickered. "I agree," she told Piximon under her breath.

"I heard that!"

Kouichi quickly paid for the bill and they were on their way out again. "I really should go talk to Duskmon and Lowemon," he murmured absentmindedly.

"Those two are here...I forgot," Kouji muttered, a hand slapping his forehead.

The older twin nodded. There was a half-smile on his face. _Duskmon_..._how did I forget?_ He found his eyelids drooping. "Y-you know...I think I'll go take a nap in the sun," he murmured, jumping over the wooden banister of the ramp that lead towards the main street. He waved to Kouji and Kako once he was a few feet away. "I'll catch up with you two later!" Kouichi called out.

Exchanging a confused look with Kako's eager one, Kouji let out a sigh. "Go ahead," he murmured, motioning towards his brother. "I'll take Piximon..." _And I can't promise he'll be alive later, but I'll try_.

Kako turned to face Kouichi. She smiled and murmured, "Actually I was wondering if you wanted to come along too, Kouji. You seem pretty stressed out yourself." She looked behind her shoulder. "I can take Piximon, by the way. He's way too much trouble for you," added Kako.

Kouji watched Piximon flutter beside the girl and nodded. "I'll..." _Take a nap at home_, he finished in his head.

"Okay. Catch you later," Kako replied before he could finish. She placed the hat on her head and hopped over the fence, racing Piximon to Kouichi.

Watching the sight, Kouji smiled. _Peace, quiet...and they're happy. Take that, idiot_. He walked back to the house, making a note to call Takuya and the others once he did.

-------------------------------------

Takuya watched over his brother for the hours until morning before Shinya finally awoke. When he did, he nearly rolled out of bed in surprise, the first thing seen being Takuya's goggles. Before he could yell, 'Wow, I get the goggles...?' all of last night's happenings were remembered. Shinya's expression changed from joyful to desolate.

"Hey, how'd you sleep?" Takuya asked with a grin.

Guiltily, Shinya looked down at his feet.

The older Kanbara sighed, "Shinya...I'm calling the others. I don't know what's wrong, but do you know what you were doing...?" When the younger boy shook his head, Takuya let out an uneasy laugh and rubbed the back of his head. "I don't, either. So right know we'll call Tomoki, Hideki, Izumi, Junpei, Kouichi and-oh wait, those two aren't here," Takuya muttered under his breath.

"Neither is Kouichi. He went to Hawaii, too," Agunimon said.

The goggle boy jumped. His head swung wildly from side to side until he spotted the digimon behind him. "WHA-! Oh, Agunimon...you scared me," Takuya gasped, a hand placed over the general location of his heart. Catching his breath, he rose to his feet. Clearing his throat, Takuya ordered, "Shinya, you go take a bath and eat breakfast and stuff. I'll call the others!"

Shinya nodded unenthusiastically and scrambled out of bed.

Precisely thirty minutes later, all save the twins, Kako, Hideki and Rai were in Shinya's room (along with a tired Shinya) gazing at the computer with interest. Tomoki held Bokomon's book in his hand, opened to the last page. "I recognize some characters," he murmured, holding the book up. He pointed to a character on the page and then to the first on the computer. "But how did _Shinya_ stumble across it?"

"It says annihilation," Shinya whispered, shrinking behind the chair as everyone turned to him.

"Ah, um...y-yeah, she's their biology teacher and um...um, I'm their...uh, their..." Hideki's loud stuttering was heard from the front.

Smoothly, Rai intervened, "Foreign language teacher, Mr. Sakai."

"Oh...how are Takuya's grades?" Mrs. Kanbara inquired curiously.

Takuya dashed out of the room with a scowl plastered on his face. "Mom!" he whined. "Hey, Mr. Foreign language teacher! Get over here!" he snapped, motioning to the two grown ups and racing back to Shinya's room.

As Rai and Hideki entered the room, Junpei rose an eyebrow. "Wow...holding hands? Is that part of the job?" he asked, eyeing their hands.

Rai quickly removed her hand from Hideki's grip and walked over to the children. She placed a hand on her hip and looked down at Izumi. "So, what's the deal?" asked Rai, unsure of what was going on. Takuya had been abrupt on the phone as he thought he had interrupted something of importance (if romantic breakfasts were important), and he had hung up after fifteen seconds of quick stumbling over words.

Trying to make for under the bed, Shinya let out a sob. Hideki quickly lunged forward and caught the boy, dragging him up onto his feet and holding him still, despite his cries. "Let me go!" Shinya shrieked, wriggling in Hideki's grip. "Let me go! Let me go, please! I don't want to read it! Let me go!" He broke out into cries as his eyes shut and he continued to scream.

Startled, Izumi sent Takuya a desperate look. "He wasn't this bad a few hours ago," Takuya muttered, walking up to his brother and placing both hands on the younger Kanbara's shoulders. "Shinya, stop," he ordered.

Tears streaming down his face, Shinya quieted down and looked up as Takuya instructed. "Please," he whispered in a quiet, almost toneless voice. Yet there was the slightest hint of a frantic plea.

Lowering himself to his brother's height, Takuya let out a sigh. "Listen," he told Shinya, "I need you to tell us everything it says. If you do, you'll help us out a _lot_, okay, Shinya?" The boy nodded and Takuya continued, "If it scares you, we'll give you a break, but please, just try. For Izumi if not for me?"

Shinya couldn't help but laugh at the last comment. Through his tears, he nodded and stepped up to the computer. The boy flinched as, raising a finger to the screen so the rest could follow along, he read aloud, "'_Annihilation will come...t-to those...who take place in this moment._' And then...'_Darkness and Light, created from Chaos, bend to our will and..._'" Shinya broke off, shivering and whimpering.

"I see," Rai murmured, pulling Shinya back. She smiled down at the boy. "Thank you, Shinya. You can stop now," she told him, smoothing down his hair.

Junpei murmured, feeling slightly guilty, "I think...Kanaye did this to him."

The goggle boy turned to him with a look of pure disbelief. At the top of his lungs, Takuya screamed, "_WHAT_?"

"Takuya-" Izumi started, placing a hand on his shoulder to calm him down.

Takuya shrugged it off, sending a piercing glare in Junpei's direction. Gulping, Junpei continued, "No, it's okay, Izumi. I...I was forced to work for Kanaye for the while since you guys have been calling me like crazy you know? And...just the other day, Shinya found me. I was _attempting_ to steal, but Shinya bought the candy for me anyway, so it wasn't too much trouble. He followed me after that, though, and I couldn't lose him. Ritsuo and the others pounced him and tied him to the chair and Kanaye came in and...I'm not really sure what happened." Junpei shut his eyes as Takuya grabbed him by his collar and lifted him to his feet. "I...I didn't mean for this to happen, Takuya," he choked.

"You damn well _should_ be!" Takuya snarled, throwing Junpei to the floor. Furiously, he looked in the direction of Hideki and Rai. "What does it _say_?" he growled.

Soothingly stroking Shinya's back to comfort him, Rai (who had squatted down to Shinya's level) replied, "It's basically just a rite to open a gate to the Digital World. It can't be done alone, though. There has to be a replica of the rite done in another computer somewhere else. The space in between the two computers will be the space the gate occupied. I know what you're going to ask, spare me." She held up a hand as Tomoki opened his mouth. "We already have an opening to the Digital World through the train station. Well, that one's probably shut off now, and all other openings are random since Lucemon's pushed through to the real world. To get a gate to open almost permanently, this rite is needed. To get a gate to be physically real in the real world, this rite is needed."

There was silence, save the occasional sobs of Shinya into Rai's shoulder. "Ph-physically real?" Takuya repeated, taking a step back.

Junpei picked himself up off the floor and fell back down again. "So Lucemon is-"

"He's obviously got someone else opening a gate elsewhere. I have a sneaking suspicion who it is," Rai muttered the last part under her breath.

Hideki, for the first time in minutes, murmured, "And you're probably wondering about the last page of Bokomon's book? See, that's...kind of a funny story, actually." He let out a sigh and rubbed the back of his neck. "You see...I'm...well, since the incident with Angemon...I've been switched to the shadow...of...uh...well, this is kind of embarrassing..." They all watched as Hideki turned read.

Curiously pulling away from Rai, Shinya gazed up at Hideki. "Yeah?" he asked eagerly.

Scowling, Hideki folded his arms across his chest. Looking away, he snapped, "Okay, okay! My digimon shadow is-"

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Hah! Cliffy return! Take that. And while I may not like the look of the new season of Digimon, Wada _better_ do some songs or...somehow...I'll go to...Japan...and, uh...() I give up. On a side note, I updated sooner than I thought I would! (It's thirty minutes before school) It pays to wake up early.

THAAAAAAAAANK YOUUUUUUUUU for the ever _so_ beautifully (as Crusadermon would say) lovely reviews-** GemmaniGirl, Winter's Light, The Light's Refrain**

Review or PM or Flame!


	26. Live On The Discovery Channel

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

Dedication- Letta! Sorry for not doing this on your b-day. OO I'm bad with dates. And a late 'pi' day to all.

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Live On The Discovery Channel: A Very Boring Life

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"_Neemon_," Hideki finished.

For the first time in hours, Shinya burst out into laughter. The rest remained silent, gawking at Hideki in disbelief. Rai was the exception and she tried to stifle her laughter, but ended up giggling with Shinya.

"No _wonder_ you lied to Kako about not having a shadow," Tomoki murmured in amazement.

Izumi let out a groan. "You guys," she murmured, "Neemon wasn't all that bad..."

At the memory, Junpei sighed and crossed his arms. He nodded in agreement. "Yeah...yeah, Neemon was cool. But he _was_ kind of...iffy in the head, if you know what I mean. Perfect fit, Hideki!" the boy laughed.

Twitching, Hideki reddened with rage. Noticing this, Takuya quickly coughed his laugh away and pointed to Bokomon's book. "So what does it say?" he asked eagerly.

Hideki took his time to answer. He held out a hand in Tomoki's direction. After the boy handed the book to him, he turned the book to face the children and opened it to the last page. "Listen and listen well. No, it doesn't say that, Junpei, I'm _telling_ you to listen, so if you doze off, don't expect me to repeat this," Hideki growled, glaring at Junpei. Junpei snapped to attention, and everyone focused their eyes in Hideki's direction as he continued, "There was a prophecy written in the ruins of Cherubimon's castle. By now, every digimon knows it. It's just like the 'Ten Legendary Warriors,' you know? It starts off like this-oh, unless Shinya wants to read?"

In an almost violent manner, Shinya shook his head and grabbed onto Ms. Kawai's arm. Rai smiled at Shinya in an encouraging manner and Hideki glared jealously at the boy. Making sure his thoughts wouldn't wander, he shook his head to clear it. "'_Ancient evils will arise twice more_. _Darkness and Light will separate_.' And after that, you have to ask Ichiro, because I never paid attention to Dad," Hideki announced.

Izumi twitched. "You mean to say you led us into this big dramatic listening mode just to tell us _TWO LINES_?" she screamed rising to her feet with her pillow in hand.

"Now, now...I'm just saying to call Ichiro. I know more, I'm just being kind and letting him have a say. Plus, I get to boast about how awesome I am," Hideki commented, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Hah, he'll be j-"

"You will tell him _nothing,_" Rai interrupted sharply.

At that moment, the phone rang, interrupting any chance of Hideki replying or any of the children (especially Shinya, who was now more comfortable) asking Ms. Kawai what she had meant. "Got it," Takuya muttered, picking up the phone and answering in a bored and conditioned manner, "Hello, Kanbara residence, what can I do for you?"

"You can stop sounding stupid," came the reply.

Immediately, Takuya switched to the speakerphone. "YOU DORK, I DO NOT SOUND STUPID! I was expecting some other idiot to call, but you're still an idiot, bandana brain. How's Hawaii?"

Hideki looked away from his glaring at Shinya, who was still holding onto Rai's arm. "Eh? Twerp two? Wait! Is Kako there?" he yelled, racing towards the phone.

"It's on speaker," Takuya muttered, "You don't need to yell." He looked at Ms. Kawai with an eyebrow raised. In turn, she let out an exasperated sigh. "Tell Kako and Kouichi we all say hi," Takuya added.

Kouji was silent for a while. "Right...are you _all_ there?" he asked.

"Um...yeah, actually, we are."

"Oh...say...uh, Takuya, how's everyth-"

Hideki pushed Takuya out of the way. "Hold it twerp two! Can you get Ichiro to come over?" he asked, one hand covering the goggle boy's mouth.

Angrily, Takuya bit Hideki's hand, pushed the young man away, and began coughing and spitting. He quickly ran to the bathroom, and everyone shook their heads.

"Do I _want_ to know what's going on there?"

Gazing distastefully in Hideki's direction, Rai answered, "No...not really."

"Right...ah, whatever...I'll get Ichiro in half an hour," Kouji returned.

"GET HIM NOW!" Takuya screamed, racing back into the room.

"Why?"

Takuya shrugged and looking at Hideki. "Why?" he asked dumbly.

Biting back a retort, Hideki sat down in the empty chair by the computer. "_Because_," he said aloud, trying not to growl, "Ichiro's the one who can tell us the damn thing!"

"You mean pr-" Takuya started. He was unable to finish when Hideki 'accidentally' ran over his foot with a chair.

"Thing?" Kouji repeated.

"Yes, thing. Take your time, just make sure he calls us! Or you know what, we'll call his cell! Thanks anyway, twerp two!" Hideki said quickly before turning the speakerphone off.

Everyone stared at Hideki in disbelief. Clenching her fists Izumi yelled, "I didn't even get to ask him how the mall was!"

"Izumi...Kouji doesn't pay attention to those things..." Takuya murmured, patting her back.

"Whatever," Hideki said, rising to his feet with the phone in hand. He quickly dialed a number and pressed the phone to his ears. "Come on, pick up..." Nervously, Hideki bit his lower lip. After a few seconds of intense waiting, Hideki let out a yell, threw the phone down, and put on the speakerphone. "ICHIRO, I WIN! YOU OWE ME TWENTY!" he yelled triumphantly.

Rai twitched, but said nothing. Under his breath, Shinya mumbled something in disbelief. Aloud, Takuya told his brother, "Shinya, this is Hideki. He'd obviously do something stupid like that."

The younger Kanbara nodded and pointed to Rai. "Yeah, but still, she's right here!"

"Sakai, shut your trap, would you?" came the annoyed voice from the speaker. Ichiro cleared his throat. "Hi, Rai. I know you're there. Forgive Hideki, I pressured him into it. Say, how about a date sometime when-"

Wide-eyed, Hideki screamed, "STOP FLIRTING WITH HER, SHE'S MINE YOU TRAITOR!"

The blond haired girl rolled her eyes. "Ichiro, is it?" Izumi asked aloud so her voice would travel to the receiver.

Ichiro whistled. Laughing, he declared, "Wow, I hear an ang-"

"Don't finish that, Ichiro," Rai and Hideki warned the man on the other end.

Reddening, Izumi muttered, "Takuya..."

The goggle boy inclined his head. He silenced everyone with a wild wave of his hand and then turned to the phone. "What is the prophecy?" Takuya demanded.

Ichiro was silent for a while. After a sigh, he gave in. "Listen, and listen close. Don't go blabbing this out to anyone else, got it? Alright...this happened far before the ten legendary warriors or Lucemon..."

-------------------------------------

"It's over so fast...the day, I mean."

"Is it?" Kouichi laced his fingers behind his head. He lay down on the sand with his eyes closed, catching the warm rays of the fading sun.

Kako sat beside him, gazing towards the horizon. They were well away from the water, and Piximon lay asleep, between the two. "He'll be the best digimon trainer ever," Kako vowed quietly.

Surprised, the boy tilted his head in her direction. "He? Piximon?" Kouichi asked. His upper body lifted slightly.

The girl nodded. A gentle breeze brushed past. Turning to Kouichi, Kako murmured, "Piximon's perfect for the job. But...that's besides the point. Kouichi, why did you come here...?" A small frown on her face, Kako lay back on the ground, still staring at Kouichi. Her hands reached for Piximon, bringing the digimon into an almost childish embrace, as one would hug a teddy bear.

Feeling slightly uncomfortable, Kouichi turned his back to Kako. "I..." he started. "I'm sorry, I really am." He whirled onto his other side, facing Kako with pleading eyes. "Please, Kako, understand, it's not that I didn't trust you, I did! I...I don't know...Duskmon wanted me to come, and a part of me did, too. And y-I mean, Hideki-"

"Quiet," Kako commanded, pressing a finger to his lips. Her heart quickened its pace at the touch. Placing Piximon behind her and sitting up, Kako told Kouichi, "You're starting to stutter." Her face quickly turned away from him.

Sitting up as well, Kouichi let out a sigh. "Kako, I-"

She shook her head. In a firm voice, Kako told him, "Please, don't try to explain." When he opened his mouth again, she looked at him, regarding him with eyes filled with amusement. "Kouichi, shut up," the girl laughed.

_Laughing. She's laughing...?_ Confused, Kouichi reached over Kako, yanking her backpack over. He opened it slowly and took out the diary. "Kako...read a bit more, would you?" asked Kouichi somewhat hesitantly. He knew he couldn't push her, but the amount he wished to tell her couldn't be told if she wouldn't read the diary.

Immediately, the smile on Kako's face was replaced with a look of sorrow. She was ready to protest; he could tell as she looked at him, mouth open. Kako chose otherwise and took the book in her hands, opening it.

"Please...read it to yourself," Kouichi murmured, lying back down on the sand. _Please, understand_.

Kako was trembling as her hands pried open the book. The pages were blank, then she found the letters shining brightly in her eyes. Startled, Kako began to panic, struggling with the jacket that had been thrown upon her.

Chuckling lightly, Kouichi pulled it off and smiled at her. "Hey, remember? It's got to be slightly dark," he told her, handing Kako the jacket.

She took it in her hands and placed it slightly over her head and over the book. In a bare whisper, Kako said, "Right. Dark..." and trailed off as she began to read.

-------------------------------------

'_The Prophecy_:

'_It's been done_. _I have discovered through intensive research the origin behind the tree_. _They believe it's simply a miracle, just as they find all those rocks and other random debris to be from space or from the past_. _It is from the past_, _true_. _It is from the past of the _Digital World.

'_The tree serves as a gate between the dimensions_. _It wasn't long before Harumi and I discovered the true meaning of the so-called _"_runes_" _on the tree_. _It is an ancient language of the _Digital World, _from far before the origin of Lucemon_. _It is as old as the _Chaos _itself_, _and takes its origin there_. _It goes as follows_:

"What was once pure will become corrupt. The corrupt will return to their former selves. Darkness and Light will separate and take opposite sides. Ancient evils will arise twice more from this day, nothing in comparison to the evil to come.

"A battle will be set, well known to all. Fire, Wind, Water, Ice, Thunder, Earth, Wood, Steel, and Darkness will combine. Should Light not join, Chaos will swallow all. Worlds will cease to exist, and terrible wars will erupt.

"With the aid of Light, all will return normal. Sides will be distinguishable and the battle easily won."

'_Everything else is smeared, faint, unreadable_. _Speaking of unreadable, Harumi came up to me today_. "Marise," _she told me_, "you're a horrible husband." _Perhaps it is because I haven't spent that much time at home?_ _Hawaii was a long trip, though_. _I suppose wives know the best, however strange they are_.'

-------------------------------------

"...and that's the prophecy according to Marise," Ichiro told them.

Aloud, Takuya thought, "That was it...? It's short!" He then added a good-natured joke, "Just like the krill." Takuya grinned at his younger brother and waved a dismissive hand and the angry tongue sticking out at him.

Ichiro laughed, "Yeah, it is short. Mr. S said it was short because it was, 'Well written, well prophesized and well spaced.' Not in that order, of course. Well...Ryu's here...uh...uh oh. Um, Hideki, talk to you later-"

"NO!" Tomoki shouted. "Wait! I have to ask you about the page in Bokomon's book!" Desperately, he made a grab for the speakerphone.

Amidst all the chaos that began to form, Hideki picked up the phone and turned it on, ending the speakerphone line. "Hey Ichiro, you've reached the Kanbara residence, housing the great star Hideki Sakai. Please call back any time," Hideki said in his most automatic message sounding voice.

"Oh, cool, it's Hideki!" Hideki froze. "Did you know Kako's going out with that...that guy?" the younger voice on the other side of the line asked.

Stuttering, Hideki answered, "Y-yeah...twerp one...hey, Ryu, how's life been...?" _Give it back to your brother, you twerp_, Hideki thought menacingly.

Out of despair, Ryu screamed, "YOU MEAN YOU LET HER DATE HIM?"

_Yes, you unworthy twerp_. "Yes," Hideki answered in a bored voice.

"Hey, are you going out with Rai?"

_It's coming,_ Hideki realized, shooting Rai a look. She was too busy talking and laughing with Shinya. "Oh, yes. We're madly in love. Passionately. Much like Kako and Kouichi. Yeah, they've got major plans ahead of them," Hideki commented aloud. He wondered just how far he should lead the boy.

"R-Really...? Kako and-"

At that point, Ryuusei was cut off by an annoyed Ichiro. The older of the Egawas muttered, "Ryu, if you don't shut up, I'll tell Kouichi about that time when you were surfing." The threat shut his brother up with a squeak.

Unfortunately, it had also gotten Hideki's attention. "Hey, what happened then?" Hideki demanded.

"Nothing much, tell Rai I said hi, later Hideki!" Ichiro said quickly before hanging up.

Angrily, Hideki screamed at the dead line, "YOU DIDN'T KEEP YOUR PROMISE!" He slammed the phone down on the receiver and cursed quietly to himself.

Rai turned to Hideki, eyeing him curiously. "Promise?" she repeated, eyebrow raised. There was no hint of emotion on her face, but Hideki was sure if he said the wrong thing, she'd erupt far worse than any long dormant volcano.

He started off with a nod. _Take it slow_, he told himself. "See, I called Ichiro last night and we agreed he'd tell them who was his digimon shadow," Hideki told her, "but he didn't, so he owes me twenty dollars because I remembered to call him and another five because he didn't say." He winced and prepared for a hit of any kind.

Embarrassed, Rai looked at the ceiling. She was silent and for some reason Hideki could not comprehend, she looked guilty. He was about to ask when she murmured, "I thought...you were betting money on me like last time..."

"If you don't remember, last time you beat me to near-death," Hideki told her pointedly, taking a seat beside her and glaring at Shinya.

The little boy stuck his tongue out. Ignoring Hideki's growl, Shinya yelled, "Takuya! Ichiro already hung up. You guys can stop fighting, you know." He smiled in the direction of his brother, who was wrestling the book from Tomoki and Junpei's grasp. Izumi stood to the side, arms folded and head shaking side to side in disbelief.

Clearing his throat and smoothing down his shirt, Takuya muttered, "Right." He readjusted his goggles that had been knocked askew. "So...the prophecy is that short. And we've got to worry about us going to the evil side...?" he asked.

"No-" Rai started.

Bowing her head slightly, Izumi sighed. "And poor Kouji's going to have to deal with us. Wow, that's sad," murmured the girl, brushing her hair out of her eyes.

Rai opened her mouth again, this time cut off by Junpei.

Junpei declared, "Tie me to a tree. Kouji's going to pummel me if I do something wrong." He tried to stand straight, but found himself sinking lower and lower to the ground.

Angrily standing up and pushing Shinya forward a step, Rai snapped, "Would you all be quiet?" A quick silence ensued, and all eyes were focused on her. "_Thank_ you. Now that isn't what the prophecy means, numbskulls!" she continued.

Takuya's jaw dropped. "It doesn't?"

Tomoki shook his head and mumbled a quick, "No." When everyone looked at him, Tomoki looked to Rai for permission. She nodded and he drew a breath. "It says that everything is pretty much dependent on Light. If Light does this, this will happen. If Light does that, that will happen. It's not that _we're_ joining Lucemon. Kouichi's Darkness, remember? It's _Kouji_ that we have to worry about, not _ourselves_," Tomoki told them.

Several more jaw drops took place, first Hideki, Junpei, then Shinya. The youngest boy then screamed, "I _knew_ he couldn't be trusted!"

"I think...it's more of a separation of...I can't explain..." Frustrated, Tomoki let out a sigh and gazed up at the ceiling. "It's just...think about it. Of all of us, only Kouji hasn't gotten his spirit _or_ D-Tector."

"Yeah...true," Takuya murmured.

The others seemed to slowly understand it. "So it's just that kind of separation?" inquired Junpei. _Nothing else...? Kouji's probably the worst person to make an enemy of,_ he thought, shivering at the mental image.

Letting out a sigh, Takuya pointed to his brother. Letting the hand drop to his side, he opened his mouth, but nothing came out. "W-well, what do we do about Shinya, now? Tie him to the bed?" the boy suggested.

Shinya squeaked, tightening his hold on Rai. Hideki barely managed to suppress a growl. "No," Rai murmured, patting Shinya's head, "We just need to keep a watch on him at all times. He can't be around any computer for more than an hour. Okay?" She looked around and waited for a confirmation.

"Got it!" everyone returned enthusiastically. Soon, they were filing out of the door.

"Yeah, I've got to check if the prophecy matches with this last page," Tomoki admitted, waving to Takuya and walking out.

Junpei followed, claiming he had to clean the garage. Hideki and Rai left, too, and Takuya didn't want to hear their excuse. Izumi was the last to leave. She waved to Takuya and said, "Make sure you watch him, okay? I'll help you out tomorrow. Bye, Shinya!"

Smiling, Shinya waved and watched them all leave before turning to his older brother. "Say, Takuya..." he murmured, suddenly turning serious. "Am I...becoming evil...?"

Takuya, who had been spacing out for the past few seconds, turned to his brother and shook his head furiously. "No way, no how!" the older boy swore. He quickly removed his goggles and slipped them over Shinya's head, adjusting the straps to further secure them. Almost growling, Takuya ordered, "Keep this for me. Safe. Promise?" His eyes bore into Shinya's.

Shinya was surprised, running his fingers over the goggles with awe. "R-really...?" he asked in a soft voice. Takuya nodded. Without warning, Shinya threw his arms around his brother.

No more was said. Takuya let out a tired sigh, allowing one hand to fall onto his brother's head. _Agunimon_, he thought, gazing up at the digimon behind Shinya, _make sure...if I'm not there...that he's safe. No matter what. I guess we have to switch from one mission to another_.

_Such is the way of heroes_, Agunimon returned. The two smiled and Takuya's eyes slipped shut.

_Right_. _Such is the way of heroes_.

-------------------------------------

Kako shut the diary, pushed the jacket off, and gazed at Kouichi. _Hawaii. A tree...?_ "Hey, Kouichi, do you want to go for a walk?" Kako asked automatically before she had any time to think. She quickly placed the book in her bag and picked Piximon up.

"Why not?" Kouichi shrugged. He picked up his jacket and put it on.

The girl rose to her feet and slung her backpack on her shoulder. _Where...would it be?_ She wondered, _a tree like that would be in a forest and there's a forest_...

"That way!" she finally decided, pointing towards a clump of green in the distance.

Kouichi peered into the distance, one hand raised above his eyes to shield them from the sun. In a murmur, he told her, "Seems like a long walk. How about..." He trailed off, seeming to be having an internal argument with himself.

Confused, she looked in his direction. "How about what?" Kako asked.

In a brisk pace, Kouichi walked towards a deserted alleyway between two restaurants, grabbing a hold of Kako's hand as he did. He grinned at her and brought out his D-Tector. _Lowemon_. "Beast Spirit Evolution," Kouichi muttered, smiling broadly.

With a yelp, Kako jumped back.

-------------------------------------

They arrived at the edge of the forest in a matter of minutes at which point Kouichi dedigivolved. Kako stumbled around for a while, eyes wide. "That...was...so awesome," she mumbled in disbelief, stopping herself by placing a hand on a tree.

"Well let's go," Kouichi murmured, looking around the forest. "Uh...wherever we're going." He looked to Kako for information.

She shrugged. Trying to sound casual, Kako suggested, "How about...we...just wander around, you know? Without the getting lost part. I could do without that." As she said that, she nervously seized his arm. _No getting lost...no getting lost_, she repeated to herself for reassurance. In a few words, she was panicking.

Seeming to notice this, Kouichi brushed her off and took a good look at her. "Kako," he murmured, "we won't get lost." He pointed to Piximon and continued, "If we do, Piximon can fly and scout us out of here. And I'm sure KaiserLeomon can charge out of this place and I'm sure, if all else fails, Duskmon'll come in real handy!" He laughed when Kako cringed. Wordlessly, he walked into the forest, stopping after a few steps and motioning for her to follow. No words were needed to be exchanged to show the obvious fun Kouichi was already having.

However much fun Kouichi was having was twice the terror Kako was suffering. The thoughts of giant tarantulas or slimy bugs, even exotic, ferocious animals scared her out of her wits. They had walked for about thirty minutes before Kako decided a change was in order. "M-maybe we should go back," she stuttered, clinging tightly to Kouichi's arm as a nearby bush rustled due to the wind. Her imagination was running far wilder than she had wanted it to. _What if there's a panther? No, slime molds? Ew...mold...I'm allergic to mold! I might die! AND WHAT ABOUT THE BUGS?_ The girl whimpered and shut her eyes as they continued to advance deeper into the forest. For the most part, she was squeezing Piximon in her other arm.

"Don't worry," Kouichi murmured, stopping in his tracks. Squinting, he peered ahead and half smiled. _That light ahead...kind of reminds me of_..._that_. He curiously stepped forward again, but was held back by Kako before anything else could happen. Desperately, Kouichi wriggled his arm in her grasp, trying to reassure Kako by saying, "Come on, it's just a whole bunch of trees. Kako, nothing's going to happen. Please, can we just go look ahead?" He looked at her with pleading eyes.

_But...but...I,_ Kako thought, turning towards the direction Kouichi was heading in, _I-oh...hey, what's that light?_ Immediately, she let go of his arm and dashed ahead without him.

Startled, Kouichi raced after her. _What is it with her? She didn't want to go a second ago!_ "Wait for me!" he yelled, skidding to a stop a few feet ahead of her and in front of an almost glowing tree. Sunlight filtered down between the spaces of it's branches. It was only now that Kouichi began to notice that, for the past few minutes, all they had been walking past were bushes. His heart skipped a beat. _Like the Village of Beginnings!_ Curiously, he approached the bush closest to the tree, spotting something on it.

In the meantime, Kako stood with her head tilted up, admiring the long stretching branches of the tree. Only where the branches ended did another tree stand. Underneath it's canopy, all were bushes. There was fidgeting in her arms. "Kako...I sense something important, yup yup!" Piximon mumbled with conviction, yet somewhat tiredly. He batted Kako's arms away and flew towards the tree, resting on the lower branches.

"Kako! Over here!"

Snapping out of her awe-filled daze, Kako walked over to Kouichi's side. Kouichi was kneeled by the bush, and his hands were supporting something. "What...is that?" Kako murmured. "It's like Piximon's digi-egg, only..."

Kouichi looked up at Kako with a gentle, but amused, smile. "Hey, you knew about this place, didn't you?" he asked her, withdrawing his hands from the egg and falling back on the forest ground.

She looked at her feet. There was a quiet voice that answered, something that Kako found completely unlike her, that said, "Uh, yeah. I..." She trailed off and walked towards the tree, feeling almost inferior as she observed it in greater detail.

The tree trunk itself could fit more than ten clones of Kako in the ring, or so the girl assumed. She guessed even more. The lowest branch, which Piximon was currently sitting on, was at least twenty-five feet above the ground. Instead of sparse grass, the area around the tree was surrounded by a lush field that stopped at the radius of ten feet. Kako couldn't determine the full height, but from the looks of it, it was more grown out than up; it had hardly stood apart from the rest of the forest when she looked at it from the distance.

_But then_, she realized, _that guy did say that it was a gate between the dimensions, so technically it could be that the full height is partially hidden...?_ Kako turned to Kouichi and walked over to him. "There," she murmured, pointing to the area on the tree trunk just above her head. "That's the prophecy." She threw her backpack on the ground, kneeled down and pulled out the diary. Quickly scooting beside him, Kako opened the book to relocate the prophecy page. She found it, but all that remained of the entry was the prophecy. The notes before and after that had disappeared.

Kouichi quickly skimmed the page. Whatever smile that had been on his face prior to the reading had now disappeared. Quietly, he rose to his feet and regarded the egg. Then, sitting back down, he grabbed a hold of the book lightly, so Kako was still holding on, and flipped through some more pages until they came across more writing that was barely visible, despite the bright light.

'_Shibuya_.

'_I've discovered something very interesting_. _The train station at Shibuya can be used as a gate_. _Perhaps, sometimes later, it will be used_. _It's potential as a gate, however, is weak_. _I cannot guarantee that it will last long after the first use_.'

Surprised, Kako turned towards him. "S-some of the writing...wasn't here...it...I don't understand," she blurted, staring at him, wide-eyed.

For a while, Kouichi was silent. He continued to flip through the pages, but most were blank. Finally, he told her, "You're only meant to read what was written for you. Probably the only person who would be able to read all of the diary are Marise Saito himself and..." _Your mother_, Kouichi thought to himself to complete his sentence. Instead of saying anything more, Kouichi fell silent and read the next entry he came across, this time aloud so only Kako could hear. "'_I have finished the last of my series_. _Hopefully it will be as he expected_. _I cannot say_. _As of one minute ago, it has started_. _In the next minute, all will end_. _This will be no more_. _Good day, good night_. _And yet, I shall never really leave_.' Oh, holy digimon," Kouichi suddenly uttered, slamming the book shut with horror filling his eyes. The last sentences replayed themselves in his mind.

'_Harumi, without you, it seems all my ills have come back tenfold stronger than they had originally been_. _This writing, unfortunately, is bloodstained_, _but as none but a select few will read it, all is well_. _Even with this last gasp, I cannot die_. _Cursed to watch you die, cursed to watch me die, cursed to watch the world fall apart_. _When _he_ reads this, he will be by our tree_. _I can only hope that he is willing-_'

And it lay cut off, blood stained, unfinished. Kouichi gazed at the egg on the bush. "A-alright," he breathed, "what should we do with the egg?" He looked to Kako, who was searching through the book for the page he had read. She hadn't been paying attention to the book so much as the tree when he had been reading.

"Uh...why don't we just leave it?" Kako finally murmured, shutting the book and placing it in her bag.

Without warning, Piximon swooped down, plucking the egg off the bush and shoving it in the backpack before Kako could close it. As Kako opened her mouth to protest, Piximon hit her over the head. "Quiet! Yup yup, you must take it! Tell no one or you'll regret it!" he warned them in a low voice, closing the backpack with some difficulty.

Kako shrugged and Kouichi understood. A few seconds later, footsteps were heard, and Kouichi spotted his brother among the bushes further away. While trying to get up and put on her backpack, Kako tripped over her feet and fell on Kouichi just as Kouji walked up to them. Trying to get Kako off of him, Kouichi stuttered, "Kouji! W-what are you doing here? How did you get here, too?"

The younger twin regarded the two with interest. Both hands, which had been shoved into his pockets, were held up in front of him defensively. "The tour bus. I was bored. Did I interrupt a moment?" he inquired, raising an eyebrow.

There were looks of innocence on everyone's face, save Kouji's (which was more amused than accusing). "A moment?" Kako repeated, faking an innocent tone.

It took Kouichi several seconds before the meaning sunk in. Turning red, he exclaimed, "A-a moment? What are you talking about? I-she-you think-I-WE-NO!" As Kako stood up, Kouichi scrambled to his feet and turned away from everyone.

_Ooh, Kouichi's good at acting_. _Well that saved us the trouble_, thought the girl, waving to Kouji absentmindedly. "So there's a tour bus that heads this way?"

"Yeah, past the forest edge. I...read about it somewhere," Kouji murmured. _Nothing's going to get done_. _I might as well head back_. "Uh...we should go back, huh? Dinner's in...a while," he murmured.

Furiously, Kouichi nodded, pushing Kako forward. "Right, dinner, let's go, bye," he blurted, pushing Kako forward, then, when she walked herself, pushing Kouji. Piximon flew ahead, humming happily to himself, but it didn't take a genius to tell he was warily watching Kako's bag.

From the forest edge, getting home with the direction of Kouji (while not as exhilarating as a ride on KaiserLeomon) was just as quick.

It was half an hour before dinner when they arrived home, tired and weary from the detours they had gone through at the forest (several times, Kako had led them the wrong way, insisting it was the right way). For the rest of the hour, the three sat on the couch, staring blankly at the TV. Only Kouichi was paying attention, watching the news. Piximon was in Kako's room, 'guarding' the bag, fast asleep.

Dinner, extravagantly prepared, was interesting to say at the least. From the moment Mr. Aizawa walked through the door, Kouji was sure something was going to be wrong. It was when Ichiro and Ryuusei followed that he knew for sure something was going to be wrong. He was ready to voice his concerns to Kouichi, but found that the older boy was completely calm, nodding politely in the direction of Ryuusei. _What did I miss?_ Grumpily, Kouji took his seat between his father and Kouichi.

The food was great; everyone agreed with that, much to Satomi's delight. It was the matter that they ate in that was almost disturbing, Kouji realized. Ichiro, Kouichi, and Mr. Aizawa ate like nothing was going on, Ryuusei glared at Kouji, and many times, Kouichi while eating, Kousei watched the previously mentioned trio eat great amounts of food, Satomi asked Kako how the food was when the girl began picking at her food, then asked Kouji when he began to do the same thing.

After a very eventful dinner, they all sat in the living room, Mr. Minamoto, Ichiro and Mr. Aizawa standing, Kako and the twins on one couch, Mrs. Minamoto in the armchair and Ryuusei in another, arms folded grumpily as he glared in the direction of the twins.

"So..." Kako murmured, gazing nervously in front of her. _Don't look at any of them. It's like...like Medusa! Only they aren't girls_...

Ichiro snapped his fingers and pointed at Kako. "Hideki called me today!" he recalled aloud. "Come over tomorrow, would you? And if you call Hideki sometime soon, tell him that I don't owe him anything, because I refuse to-...no, don't call him. Just come over. Oh, and if you call Rai, tell her I said hi, okay?"

Kako smiled. "Okay," she replied, nodding once before tilting her head towards Kouichi.

At that point, Ryuusei rose to his feet and stormed out of the house. Letting out an exasperated sigh, Ichiro muttered, "Please excuse my _dear_ brother Ryuusei. He has no manners. Please also excuse us for intruding upon your night, which should have been completely trouble free today. To make things easier, please excuse me..." He trailed off, and with a quick bow, turned towards the door. "Thanks for dinner, Mrs. Minamoto. It was lovely," he told Satomi with an honest expression before waving to them all and walking out the door.

Mr. Aizawa and Mr. Minamoto were engrossed in a conversation of their own. More tired than happy, Satomi fell asleep in the armchair. Between the twins, Kako soon found herself doing the same, resting her head on Kouichi's shoulder. Kouichi's gaze was almost childishly focused on his father, and Kouji's on his brother.

-------------------------------------

The entire day seemed so spontaneous, so random, Kouji realized as he sat down in front of the laptop, staring blankly at the screen. Kouichi walked into the room, yawning. "Hey...you got any extra blankets...?" Kouichi mumbled.

Kouji pointed towards the closet, his eyes never leaving the screen. The older twin made for the closets, pulling out the sheets and dragging them onto the floor. Without another word, he plopped down on top of them. Surprised, Kouji looked at his brother. "Wait, what-" After several seconds, Kouji scowled and stood up. "Take the bed, idiot!" he snapped.

"No...I'm too tired to move, anyway."

"I'm not going to be sleeping for a long time," Kouji told him. He motioned to the laptop to prove his point.

Kouichi shrugged.

Now annoyed, Kouji muttered, "Kouichi, if you don't sleep on the bed, I will _throw you out of the room_." He growled the last part to emphasize his point.

Again, Kouichi shrugged.

Kouji twitched.

Kouichi shrugged.

Another twitch.

A stare.

The younger twin stood up.

Kouichi shut his eyes as he yawned.

There was a sharp yank of the blankets from under him that sent Kouichi sprawling out the door. "AND STAY OUT, WOULD YOU?" Kouji snapped, throwing the blankets out after his brother. Cursing loudly, he shut the door.

_Twice in a day...keeps the doctor away?_ Kouichi let out a nervous laugh and rose to his feet.

_That was lame, Kouichi_, Duskmon told him, appearing beside the boy. _I'll-oh, _her_. Fine, I'll bug you later_.

Kouichi barely had any time to react before Duskmon disappeared a second later. He found Kako in front of him, regarding him with a strange look on her face. "Kouji kicked me out," he explained.

Rolling her eyes, Kako motioned to her room. "So sleep in there," she muttered.

For a while, Kouichi was silent. "Uh...as long as you won't kick me out because I'm sleeping on the floor," he said cautiously.

Kako frowned. Reluctantly, she opened her door and muttered, "Okay...I guess." _It's your room, anyway, in all technicalities, Kouichi_. _Why are you being so guest-ish?_ She plopped down on the bed, watching as Kouichi spread the blankets and lay down. "Duskmon's here."

"Yeah..." Kouichi shut his eyes, trying to battle and submit to the sleep that overcame him.

"It was a statement."

"I know."

Rolling onto her stomach, Kako looked over at Kouichi from the edge of the bed. "So..." she murmured, "today was weird."

"I agree."

"You could say more."

Nodding, Kouichi admitted, "I could."

"And you don't want to...?"

"I guess..."

"I'll make you."

"Just try."

"I'm going to tell Kouji-"

"You wouldn't."

Kako stopped, realizing she needed to be slightly cleverer in the game. Smiling, she sang, "I can make you say one word."

His eyes opened, revealing his amusement. "Can you?" Kouichi inquired, chuckling as her face contorted with fury.

"I can make you say three words," Kako tried.

"Oh, really?"

"AHA! See! You said one word!"

"'Oh' counts."

"NO, it doesn't!"

"It does."

"Does not!"

"Does, does," Kouichi taunted, raising a finger to poke Kako's nose.

The girl squirmed back. "Grah! Jerk!"

"Admit defeat?"

"Fine, fine..."

"Game over."

Kako made a face. "Will you stop now?" she groaned.

Laughing, Kouichi nodded. "So...what was that all about?" he asked, suddenly becoming serious.

The girl fell silent, lying down on her bed and pulling the covers towards her chin. "What do you mean...?" Although she asked, Kako knew exactly what he was talking about. When he sat up and looked at her, Kako murmured, "I...was curious, that's all. Um, Kouichi?"

"Yeah?"

"How did this guy know my mother?" Kako asked quietly.

It was Kouichi's turn to fall silent. He lay back down against the blankets. "I..." he started, but quickly stopped himself. "I can't tell you, Kako. I can't lie, either. It's for you to...to find out another day," he said at last, turning his back to her.

That was the last time they spoke for the night. For the rest of the hours, Kouichi fell asleep to hearing his breathing, Kako's sighs and mumbles, and across the hall in Kouji's room, the tapping of fingers on a keyboard.

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A/N-

Well, it's a longer chapter, but long is nothing compared to it's quality. The action seemed cut short. And...it twisted into something else I can't take out. Entire message went well with the title (for once). Boring. I did something right. Cool! Yes, more action next chapter.

Thank you for the reviews! It's good to hear from all of you (especially after chapters of absence)-**GemmaniGirl, The Light's Refrain, Snowy Leopardess, Winter's Light**

Review replies will be sent out later!

Review or PM or Flame.


	27. One And A Half Very Confused Antagonists

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

Dedication- Secil! It's nowhere near close to your birthday, I know, but let's just get through the year together (safely), okay? I wish you luuuck, everyone taking the CAHSEE. Also, dedicated to **The Light's Refrain**. I very much loved pouring into all those possibilities with you of Haru's existence. Jason as well, because talking to you was awesome. We got a lot done. But most importantly, Charlie. Jello to you, too.

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One And A Half Very Confused Antagonists

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Ai furiously shook the chair in front of her. There was no one in it, but in her head, she imagined it was Kanaye, tied to the chair and begging her to stop hurting him. If she could even start to inflict pain...

"But _no_, I had to be with him. I had to choose him as my partner. I could have been paired with _anyone_. _Anyone_. I chose him, and _this_ is what I get!" she screamed. Angrily, Ai picked up the chair and threw it at the closed door. "I could have even chosen _Duskmon_!"

"_Duskmon_ wouldn't have agreed," came the annoyed tone of a girl. Naoko pushed the door open, kicked the chair aside, and walked in, slamming the door shut behind her. "I swear, who does that damn Fujita think he is?" she scowled.

Gracefully sitting down on the desk, Ai asked, "Again?" Her eyes were vacant of emotion although the rest of her features gave her a bored look. One hand was on the desk, while the other was just above her shoulder, close to her ear, twirling a strand of hair. She had grown accustomed to hearing Naoko's complaints about Fujitaka.

Bringing the chair upright, Naoko sighed. She sat down in the chair and explained, "I've just...I don't know! He was exercising, and I just pointed out everyone could do better than he could, especially Kouichi. And he blew up at me, screaming about how he'd kill the 'bastard.' I just don't understand! He's so stupid!" Her hand connected with the flat surface of the door.

Crossing her legs, Ai smirked. "Well, Ranny-" she started.

"-I told you not to call me that!" Naoko snapped.

The first girl rolled her eyes. She folded her hands neatly in her lap and said, "They all hate Kouichi. You know that. He's too nice, and he's easy for us to use. Of course, he realizes it a minute or two after it takes a normal boy to, but he's still nice about it." She motioned for Naoko to move to the side when she heard screaming.

Curiously, Naoko stood up and opened the door. When she peeked her head out, she discovered a flustered Kanaye racing down the stairs after Ritsuo. "Oh, Ai," Naoko sang quietly, laughing a little.

Smirking, Ai hopped off the table and walked over. Naoko opened the door a bit wider to allow Ai space. Ai's arms folded across her chest as she murmured, "Well, well, well..." Her eyes followed Kanaye as, minutes later, he stormed back up stairs and shut himself up in his room.

Naoko applauded, making sure to muffle the claps. She shut the door and turned to Ai, smiling. Her eyes revealed her much obvious delight. "Well, looks like someone's plan didn't go accordingly."

The other girl just opened the door and walked outside, heading straight to Kanaye's room. Softly, she returned, "Oh, but my plan is right on track." Putting on her most innocent look, Ai knocked on Kanaye's door.

-------------------------------------

Kanaye sat at his desk, eyes shut. Both hands rested on his temples, elbows were propped up on the desk for support. A knock on the door snapped him out of his concentration. Cursing through his gritted teeth, Kanaye's eyes flew open. "Come in," he growled icily.

He didn't have to look to know it was Ai. Seconds passed, and soon her arms were wrapped around his neck lovingly. Kanaye completely ignored her, knowing all too well it was an act. "So, what went wrong?" Ai gently cooed, brushing past his ear. When he didn't answer, she just smiled.

From the reflection on the computer screen, Kanaye saw this. He sneered as he inquired, "Are you here just to laugh at me? Go ahead, Ai. What, did you tip him off?" His voice betrayed his annoyance with a growl in the end. Noticing the indignant snort that came from beside him, Kanaye pried Ai's arms off of him and stood up.

"I've had _enough_," he snapped.

Ai's eyes went wide. "And I haven't?" she practically shrieked. Angrily, she took a swipe in his direction. When she missed, Ai pushed the chair over in his direction.

Kanaye quickly steadied the tilting chair and glowered at Ai. After several deep breaths, he made for the door, completely ignoring her as she yelled, "You think you know everything! You don't, so don't forget it, Kanaye! Not everything's going to plan and it's _your_ fault!" There was the sound of a slam of the door; as to who shut the door, Kanaye was unsure.

He found himself outside soon enough, taking a great gulp of fresh air for the first time in hours. The wind felt slightly good. In all his life, Kanaye never imagined himself in the position he was in now.

Alone. Rejected. Hated.

_Then again_, he thought bitterly, _isn't that what this job is about? I should have expected this_.

He had prepared for this day since before he could remember. Digimon lore, prophesies of the past, everything from the Digital World that was passed down through his family orally, he knew. He had studied everything from Shakespeare to Macchiavelli. Never once had he been allowed to do as he had liked.

There was a strange feeling that bubbled through him. It was as if he was simply a gentle, bubbling brook...

"Perhaps...a book would help," Kanaye murmured, smiling, much to his amazement. _I wonder if this is how _he_ feels every day, being around her_. _Perhaps_...

He could never be free...but...perhaps...

-------------------------------------

The park was cold. _No,_ Takuya thought bitterly, pulling his jacket around himself tighter, _it's freezing_. "Shinya, don't go off too far," he warned his younger brother.

Shinya, only wearing a T-shirt, looked back at his brother with a smile. He quickly nodded and wandered around the park aimlessly, never leaving Takuya's sight. The older Kanbara sighed. _How can he stand the cold...?_ He guessed it to be a trait of young children; almost everyone younger than him wasn't wearing more than two layers.

If that hadn't gotten to Takuya, it was what Hideki had told him over the phone. '_Rai says that your brother might be important to us, even more to Lucemon_. _Keep an eye on the kid_. _I kinda like him_,' he had said.

"Takuya," came a murmur from beside him.

Startled, Takuya looked up to find Izumi, breathing hard and staring down at him. Her features were flushed slightly with a hint of red. She looked as if she had been running. He sent a questioning look in her direction and motioned for her to sit down on the bench, beside him.

The blond collapsed and slumped against him. All that was heard in Takuya's ears was Izumi's harsh breath, begging to return to normal. When at last she drew one long breath, he turned his head in her direction.

"Kanaye," she told him softly, situating herself so she was no longer leaning on him, "I saw Kanaye on the way here. I...he was smiling. It was weird. He entered Marise's bookstore and..." Izumi said no more. Instead, she clung to Takuya's arm, focusing her gaze on Shinya.

The goggle boy let out a steady exhale. "He's doing pretty well," he murmured. He could feel himself shaking, and Takuya was positive it wasn't because the cold was getting to him.

Izumi noticed and pulled herself closer to him. In a quiet voice she said, "Don't worry, Takuya. Nothing will happen to him. We'll all make sure of it, okay?" He nodded and shut his eyes, and Izumi smiled. "Just go to sleep. You've earned it," she told him with a giggle. Sighing contentedly, Izumi rested her head on his shoulder and glued her eyes to Shinya, who was now chasing the birds.

A laugh escaped him, sounding forced halfway out. Unbeknownst to Izumi, small droplets formed in Takuya's eyes. _Please_, he thought, _don't let anything happen to him_. _Leave him alone_. _Whatever you do, please_...

-------------------------------------

"Stop hogging the blanket, Kouichi," Kako mumbled, tugging sharply on the material in her hands.

A groan answered her. Wide-eyed, Kako sat up, realizing she was on the floor. Kouichi lay to her right, his back to her.

For the second day in a row, she screamed in the morning. For the second day in a row, Kouichi was thrown out of the room. For the second day in a row, Kouji was awakened by this seemingly endless cycle.

As Kouichi's back connected with the wall, Kouji slammed his door shut behind him, storming into Kako's room. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING? IT'S FIVE IN THE MORNING AND YOU'RE STARTING A RACKET ALREADY!" he screamed.

Pushing the bandana boy out of her room, Kako returned, "WELL YOU'RE ALREADY AWAKE. WHAT DOES IT MATTER?" She slammed the door in Kouji's face and the bandana boy, seething, turned to his brother with an accusing look.

"I was sleeping on the floor!" Kouichi insisted. "She rolled down." Removing himself from the tangle of blankets, Kouichi stood up and regarded Kouji strangely. "You know she has a point. You're already awake. Why are you complaining?" the older twin inquired. He knocked on Kako's door, blankets rolled up in one hand.

Kouji shrugged. He folded his arms and leaned against a nearby spot on the wall. Instead of answering the question, he asked a question of his own, "You two going to the inn today?"

Kouichi nodded and muttered, "As soon as Kako opens the door." He switched the blankets from one hand to the other and knocked again.

Tugging on his bandana, Kouji contemplated his possible actions. Finally, his eyes settled on the blankets in Kouichi's hands. An amused smile formed on his face. "Those are my blankets, technically. If all you're bothering Kako for is that, you might as well spare yourself the trouble," the younger twin pointed out. He hid his smile with a mask of his own indifference.

Kouji nearly laughed as his brother reddened. "I-...I wasn't...that's not-..." He eventually headed for his brother's room and stopped talking altogether.

Half an hour later, Kouji and Kako sat at the table in the kitchen, absorbed in a heated argument while Kouichi made breakfast.

"Piximon isn't a plushie! Take that back!" Kako yelled, trying to cover Piximon's ears and hold the digimon back as he attempted to squirm out of her grip and attack Kouji.

A smirk was evident on Kouji's face. Tauntingly, he continued to chant, "Plushie," all the while pointing a finger towards Piximon.

Growling, Kako yelled, "Just wait! When he becomes famous in the digital world, you'll regret it! He'll train the best, and they'll all beat you up!" The girl let go of Piximon, crossed her arms and looked away from Kouji.

Kouichi walked over carrying the pan and three bowls stacked up on each other. The top bowl held three pairs of chopsticks. With Kouji's help, he managed to set the bowls on the table and place one pair of chopsticks in each bowl. "Scrambled eggs, enjoy," Kouichi murmured, tilting the pan over the bowls one by one and filling them.

"Couldn't you make a rainbow burger or something?" Kouji asked, staring at the bowl distastefully.

The older boy took a seat and shrugged. "There's soy sauce if you want," he offered.

Snorting, Kouji remarked sarcastically, "Yes, I'd _love_ to drink soy sauce."

"Actually I meant add it to the eggs."

"WHO ADDS SOY SAUCE TO THEIR EGGS?"

"The same person who adds hot sauce, ketchup, mustard and cucumber to their scrambled eggs," Kouichi replied, spearing a piece with his chopstick. "Shinya." He lifted the chopsticks to his mouth and stopped. "Kako, aren't you going to eat?" he inquired gently.

Kako turned to the boy with a surprised look on her face. "What?" she asked dumbly. The girl returned the questioning look on Kouichi's face with a blank look of her own.

The bandana boy pointed to her bowl. In a loud voice, he answered, "FOOD. You know, the stuff you eat?" As he said this, he picked up his chopsticks. "Yeah, you pick up the chopsticks, pick up the food, then you _eat_ the food," he said slowly, demonstrating his instructions.

She reddened considerably. "I'm...not that hungry," Kako confessed to Kouichi, ignoring Kouji's smirk that was directed towards her.

"Stick," Kouichi replied, pointing his chopsticks toward her. "Eat, or I'll feed you," he warned her. A snort escaped from Kouji, but was cut short when Kako did as Kouichi instructed.

The rest of breakfast was uneventful, composing mainly of Piximon sitting on the windowsill, glaring at Kouji and planning revenge. No one said a word. All concentrated on their food.

After breakfast, they all went out for a walk on the beach. Piximon, wearing the hat that Kako bought, enjoyed it the most. Carried by Kako, he was completely protected from the vicious wind on all sides. Kouichi's hat barely protected his face from the sting of flying sand particles, and Kouji, who was the worst one off, cursed every other second. Kako noticed this and, since it was only a few feet away when Kouji began to curse louder than ever, suggested they go into the inn.

Not much to anyone's amazement, the inn was open, bustling with customers checking in and out. At the front desk, Ichiro was helping the first person of a long line. A loud bell rang and Ichiro yelled, "Excuse me, everyone, it would help if you all sat down and I called you up, thanks. Please, silence _is_ necessary." Immediately after that, everyone fell silent.

It took twenty more minutes before they were able to talk to Ichiro. During the while, Kako, who had unsuccessfully tried to take a peek at the diary, sat down and played with the hat. Piximon slept in her lap, enjoying the cool breeze Kako created while waving the hat around in small motions. The twins engaged in several rounds of staring contests. After they were unable to break the tie, they sat down and muttered the first thing that came to their head, taking turns.

"Albatross," Kouichi started.

Kouji immediately returned, "Citadel."

"Imp."

"Ogre."

"Beanstalk."

"Steel."

"Sagittarimon."

"'_Hand over your obsessions_,'" Kouji snickered.

Grinning as well, Kouichi corrected, "Possessions."

"Bandana."

"Banana."

"Monkey Kouji!" Kako sang.

"Stay out of this!" the twins snapped, turning to her. In return, Kako stuck out her tongue and hit Kouichi with the hat, as he was closest to her.

Ichiro thanked the last customer for their patience before he cleared his throat and walked over to the three humans and Piximon. "Well, what can I do for you?" he asked, snatching the hat and placing it on Kako's head.

Kako grabbed a hold of the hat and pushed it up to see Ichiro. "You said something about Hideki calling...?"

He snapped his fingers and gestured for Kako to follow. "Right," he agreed, "This way." Ichiro motioned to the twins. "You too," he added, grabbing a hold of Piximon and plopping the digimon on his head.

They followed Ichiro to a small room cluttered with papers. Ichiro hopped over a box that lay in the middle of the room and pressed for the speakerphone. He then proceeded to dial a number. Although the twins were clueless, it only took Kako three seconds before she realized whom Ichiro was calling. Curiously, she asked, "Why are you calling Hideki now?"

Instead of answering her, Ichiro grinned. He leaned against the wall behind him as an annoyed voice answered the phone, "Hello bastard."

The twins stared at Ichiro. "HIDEKI," Kako growled menacingly.

A surprised Hideki choked. He let out a nervous laugh. "Oh, Kako...it's you? I could have sworn it was Ichiro..." he swore, adding a string of curses after that.

"Your brother...is so weird," Kouji told Kako aloud.

Hideki was the one who answered. "I HEAR TWERP TWO!"

"Yeah? That's cuz it _is_ twerp two you're speaking to!" Kouji screamed in return.

Kouichi shook his head and remained silent. Instead of staying quiet, Ichiro burst out into laughter. An indignant Hideki screamed, "ICHIRO, I KNEW IT! Was this a stupid call just to interrupt my time with Rai? DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT TIME IT IS OVER HERE?"

"Wait-Rai?" Kako exclaimed, dropping the crumpled paper she held in her hand. She had been preparing it to throw at Ichiro, but Hideki's words got to her first. "Rai's over there?" she asked.

There was an annoyed sigh, obviously female. "Idiot. Way to go, Hideki. Now please, shut up. Hello, Kako. How's Hawaii?"

The girl's jaw dropped. "WHY ARE YOU THERE? I THOUGHT-YOU-BUT-WHAT?" Kako screamed.

"Is it that great? Well, we'll call you later. Ichiro, another call like this-"

Ichiro smoothly cut Rai off. "Oh, I'm sorry to interrupt your making out session, but-"

Clearing his throat, Kouichi turned around to head out the door. "I think...I'll wait out here," he decided, quickly running out of the room before anyone had a chance to stop him. Piximon followed him, snorting in disgust.

Almost reluctantly, Kouji left as well. Before he left, he murmured to Kako, "Have fun talking to Mr. Pervert." A quick wave and he was off.

Kako stood unmoving, too startled to talk. _If Rai is with Hideki,_ she thought, eyes wide, _then_...

Ichiro must have noticed Kako's shock because he quickly said, "'Night Hideki, Rai. Uh, we'll call you back later. Bye!" Ichiro quickly reached over and turned the speakerphone off. "You didn't know?" he asked Kako.

She shook her head and tried to get over the daze. _It's good_. _They're together_. _But why do I feel so weird..._? Kako stumbled out of the room and rested against the wall, taking deep breaths to calm herself.

"You okay?" Kouichi asked, walking over with two cans of soda. He tossed one to Kako and opened his own. "Kouji took Piximon. They're supposedly heading back home, despite the fact that they're going the other way." He shrugged and took a sip of the soda, awaiting Kako's reaction.

There was an odd quiet as Ichiro stepped out of the room and felt Kako's forehead. "She isn't sick," he announced, "but why don't we go sit down in that meeting room we all love so much...? There are a few things we ought to go over."

Kouichi felt slightly misplaced. Soda still in hand, he turned his lower body towards the exit and suggested, "I could come back later if you want me to." He would have continued, but Kako grabbed his arm firmly.

"Basically, this concerns you, too," Ichiro told Kouichi, emphasizing Kako's point. "Let's go." He walked straight down the hall and took a left, not bothering to wait for Kako or Kouichi to follow him.

The two moved slowly, Kako still clinging to Kouichi. Slowly, she told him, "I...I read Marise's diary in the middle of the night. It wasn't a dream." She looked to him with wide, child-like eyes.

He tilted his head to the side and waited for her to continue. They had made some progress and were now turning left.

She stuttered the same words again and again, saying, "I-It said...It said..." Kako tried to get the words out, opening her mouth and closing it again and again.

Finally, Kouichi took one last gulp of his soda, swallowed, tossed the can in a nearby trashcan, and placed a finger on Kako's lips. "Don't force yourself," he told her. "Tell me when you can say it without stuttering. Okay?" He halted and waited for her answers, a gentle smile on his lips.

Kako nodded, lowering her head. "I'm worried," she confessed.

"Me too," Kouichi told her in a grave voice, "Me too."

-------------------------------------

Kouji ignored all of Piximon's questions as they boarded the tour bus. Even after they got off by the forest, he made sure not to volunteer any information. He was perfectly aware of what he was doing and knew the consequences.

No one would ever find out. He was sure of it.

They walked past the countless trees to the main tree that stood tall and grand, shimmering like a jewel in a sea of pebbles. Kouji walked up to the tree and examined the bark. It was there, just like in the pictures.

"What are you doing?" Piximon demanded sharply.

He sighed softly, running his hands over the ancient carvings. Never in his life had he imagined himself in a position as he was in now. Even when he was fighting Velgemon...

Kouji continued to stare endlessly at the engraved runes. "Piximon, now isn't the time to lie," he whispered softly. He felt a loss of weight on his head. "What do the runes say?" The boy turned his head to catch sight of Piximon on the lowest branch.

There was a furious glare on Piximon's face. Obviously, the digimon understood Kouji's intentions. In a low voice, he growled, "I'm not going to tell you, traitor." He was on edge. Agreeing to stay with Kouji was a mistake. He still had yet to finish his promise to Marise.

The bandana came off. Kouji pocketed the cloth in his pocket and looked at the tree. His eyes were void of any emotion. In this case, emotion would only make things worse. He had to clear his mind if this was to work. "Are you sure, Piximon? You're only hurting yourself by not saying," said Kouji, voice soft. It echoed through the silence of the woods.

Piximon continued to glare in his direction. The digimon growled menacingly and kept a tight grip on his staff.

Kouji continued, not the least bit daunted, "I know how to use this gate. There are a few fools who decide it's interesting to post this information on the Internet. Of course, most of them are never seen again after they do. You're like the keeper of the gate, aren't you Piximon? Like Nefertimon was the key to getting all the fractal code at Ophanimon's castle.

"The way to get through the gate is if you or some other gatekeeper chooses to open a gate. If you wanted, you could have opened the gate for Kouichi and Kako yesterday. Why didn't you?" Kouji regarded the digimon with a bitter smile on his face. "You knew I was coming, didn't you?"

_He knows too much_. _Forgive me, Kako_. "PSY BOMB!" Piximon yelled, springing off the branch.

It was an easy attack to side step for Kouji. What was hard was the frontal attack thrown at him by Piximon. Weaponless, it wasn't easy to defend himself. A nearby branch aided his effort to stay alive. "I'm sorry, Piximon," he muttered, sliding back and bringing up the branch as Piximon swung his staff towards Kouji, "but it'll be better if you're gone."

"P-PSY BOMB!" Piximon yelled again. His eyes widened, frightened by Kouji's words. He had no time to get away as Kouji swung the branch downwards. His promise...he had to keep it. _Please, Marise, forgive me_, Piximon thought as Kouji's branch connected with his side. Piximon flew down into the mix of grass, dirt and leaves, breath shallow. There was a shadow above him; he knew it was Kouji.

No emotion. Not a tear, not a sorry, nothing. Kouji stared down at Piximon, face blanker than ever. "Believe me, Piximon," he said softly. "Believe me. Everything's better off this way."

The last thing Piximon heard was fading footsteps before he succumbed to darkness. _Marise...I'm sorry. Maybe...later...after this sleep_...

-------------------------------------

Marise quietly accepted the jolt that passed through his heart. It caused him to lean forward against the counter, and Kanaye must have noticed. "Boy, shouldn't you be at home?" the bookstore owner demanded.

"Please, Seraphimon. Spare me the act. It's what...? Two in the morning? No one's going to hear," Kanaye retorted. He paused, taking in Marise's position. "So, how does it feel?" the boy inquired.

Despite the obvious, Mr. Saito continued to play innocent. "What?" he returned.

Kanaye was quiet for a while before he asked, "Losing a follower. What's it like?"

"Piximon wasn't so much of a follower as a dear friend, Kanaye. It hurts, but I've suffered worse. After a while, the pain numbs, and you must accept it," Marise told him firmly.

_Friends,_ Kanaye repeated in his head. He had never really had any. Perhaps the works of Macchiavelli affected him most. A kind ruler verses one who induces fear among his subjects. He had been the latter. He hadn't lost anything, but only because he had nothing to lose.

Marise shifted so he lay back in his chair, trying to catch his breath. He noticed Kanaye's confused look. Chuckling, he asked, "Devimon, are you letting human emotions get to you?"

The boy looked up, startled. "I...suppose," he answered slowly. "Tell me, Marise. Is it worth it to have friends if you'll only end up losing them?" Kanaye's eyes focused on Marise, piercing through the man.

Mr. Saito remained unaffected. A deep sigh ran through him and his eyes shut. A smile formed on his lips and he murmured, "It's worth every moment. Devimon-no, Kanaye. Kanaye, my boy, you never really lose your friends. You die, but your spirit lives. You of all people should know this." Marise's eyes opened, and he chuckled. _Maybe he'll learn_, the man thought, watching as Kanaye continued to look through the shelves. _Not as Devimon, but as Kanaye. Kanaye Chijou_.

-------------------------------------

Ichiro stood at the window, allowing the breeze to brush against him. "Let me introduce myself again," he murmured, turning to face Kouichi and Kako. Both sat down at the end of the table close to the door opposite of each other. "I am Ichiro Egawa. I am also Bokomon's shadow, as Marise would say," he told them. His hands were clasped together behind his back and a solemn look stood fixed on his face.

"Known," Kako muttered.

The young man shook his head. "Kouichi doesn't know, you forget," he told her. After a hesitant nod from Kouichi, Ichiro continued, "You read the prophecy, right? Yes, you did. Well there's a second part to it." He eyed them with a great deal of curiosity. "You two are trustworthy enough. I can't exactly trust Ryu. He'll go blabbing."

Kouichi interrupted Ichiro before he could continue. "Who is Ryu's shadow?" the boy inquired. It was a sudden question, Kouichi knew, but he was curious. Quickly, he added, "Not meaning to be rude or anything, I just-" Kouichi leaned back in his chair and looked at the table, embarrassed.

Laughing, Ichiro told him, "...that's a funny question! Not because of the way you asked it, but because his shadow is...well, it's not as funny as Hideki's shadow, but that's later. Ryuusei's shadow is Sorcermon." Ichiro shook his head and continued, "So anyway, the next part of the prophecy deals with that egg you two secured..." Ichiro trailed off once more, noticing the doorknob shaking.

A sigh was emitted from Kako. "Continue," she murmured, waving a hand towards Ichiro.

He made it quick. "Basically, it's got anything and everything to do with Banana boy. Yes, I mean _banana_," he confirmed, staring in Kouichi's direction.

_Banana? Bandana-Kouji!_ Kouichi nodded in understanding and stood up. He opened the door and nearly got hit as Ryuusei, thinking the door would never be opened, was about to kick it open. Thinking quickly, Kouichi moved himself behind the door.

Ryu stared blankly as he realized the door was open. "Oh, I thought you guys were-never mind," he muttered, walking over and taking a seat beside Kako. "So, what'd I miss?"

"Nothing you need to know," Ichiro scowled, walking outside the room.

Kako smiled and followed, dragging Kouichi along. Ryu trailed behind them, hands stuck in his pockets. Sighing, Kako removed her hat and looked at the ceiling, noticing the random colors that were painted on it. _Like a road of life_, she thought. A sharp jolt ran through her and she nearly collapsed. The only reason she didn't was because Kouichi was right beside her. Without warning, she toppled against him, eyes wide. A familiar, nauseating fear overcame her, reducing her to a simple girl, unable to do anything.

The moment he felt himself pushed to the side, Kouichi figured something was wrong. "Ichiro!" he yelled, grabbing a hold of Kako as she sank to the ground. "Something-"

"I know," Ichiro murmured, running over. Ryuusei was already by Kako's side, a hand on her forehead. "Is she heating up?" the older Egawa inquired.

Ryuusei shook his head. "But just in case...I think...it...but..." Brokenly, he looked up at his brother with worried eyes. "You think she'll-"

"Don't be stupid, you idiot! Kako's not going to die today," Ichiro yelled, whacking his brother on the head. He let out an exasperated sigh and motioned to Kouichi. "Can you carry her? We can use one of the spare rooms I use," he suggested.

_She can't die_, Kouichi thought, gazing wide-eyed at how easily Ichiro brushed it off. He nodded quickly, realizing Ichiro was talking to him. And still, as he managed to carry Kako on his back, he realized it made sense. Kouji, Piximon, the egg, the diary. _The diary_, Kouichi realized. He could read the diary. There was a reason this was happening. _Kako isn't going to die_, he told himself. It hardly reassured him.

Nothing did anymore.

-------------------------------------

Kouji collapsed onto his knees, breathing with great difficulty. He had done it, but even though he had masked any sign of emotion...

It was coming to haunt him. Piximon's terrified look, his own ruthlessness. He had done it all willingly. That was what bothered him. He had done it all willingly.

Yet what he said had been the truth. Without Piximon, things would be easier. Kouichi would probably never trust him and Kako would hate him forever, true, but the price was small to pay compared to the results he would get. _Or is it,_ Kouji wondered bitterly, _is it all that I think it is...? I'm just as blind as they are. I'm just the only one looking for an alternate way out of this_.

He stared at Piximon's limp body. No, even if he murdered Piximon, even if Piximon would probably disappear after he left, even if he hated Piximon, it wouldn't be right to leave the body lying there like a dead bird. Kouji quickly set his priorities on making a burial ground for Piximon. _At the base of the tree_, he decided, spearing the branch in his hand into the ground and lifting it up at an angle.

It took minutes of hard work. Kouji wanted it to be deep. He wanted Piximon to be buried deep; in his memories, too, he wanted the moment to be buried deep. Piximon would never be forgotten, but...

Gently, Kouji picked up the tiny body and lay it in the hole very carefully. He filled in the dirt, finding that his own tears were joining in the effort. All the while Kouji found himself thinking, _Please, Piximon, I'm sorry. I really am_.

Was he really saving everyone a bit of pain?

He had taken a shortcut back to the start of the long road he had walked during his adventures in the Digital World. After all the progress he had made, after all that he had gone through...

Kouji Minamoto was back at the start.

Once more, he was alone.

-------------------------------------

Kanaye sat down on his bed. Not one ounce of fatigue existed in his body. Not one drop was shown. He was alert, awake, ready to read. The book in his hand was written by Marise himself, and yet he didn't care. He was happy. For the first time in a long time, he was happy.

"_Minoru: Le Patron_," he chuckled to himself. _Minoru: The Boss. Marise must really want me to get my act together_, he thought with a smile.

Even his enemy was aiding him. Why weren't his followers? They weren't his friends, technically, and neither was Marise. Yet Marise, who wasn't close to him at all, was helping him. Ai and the others...

It was a rather refreshing night. There was no need to worry about cloaking the main computer room with a hologram device. There was no need to appease Ai through praise and gifts or kisses or expensive dates. There was no need to think about Ritsuo or Kimura or Shinya or Naoko and Fujitaka. There was no need for any of them. There was no need for anything except time and a good book.

Echoing throughout the house was the laughter of Kanaye. And for once, it wasn't the cold heartless laughter that usually echoed throughout the halls. For once, true, genuine laughter filled the house and rid the boy of his troubles.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

You know, just before the Kouji and Piximon scene, I stopped writing. I went online, and I was bombarded by e-mails from four people. Three from school, and one being **The Light's Refrain**. Only two really helped me move with this chapter. For almost over an hour, I talked to those two about two totally different plots. Today morning I was worrying about my writing. After talking to them, I felt a lot better. I explored things I never really could before, not alone, anyway. Jason, thanks a lot. You come up with awesome plots, and they're a hell of a lot of fun to write. And Haru's character was great to develop, **The Light's Refrain**. So thank you two a lot (even though Jason doesn't read this XP).

If I take a while to update, forgive me. I have an essay, a thesis, a book to read and a 'book report' to do. Basically, three essays and a book. Not to mention Chem and stuff, but I bs that.

THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS AND PMs-**PrincessYami, GemmaniGirl, The Light's Refrain**

Review or PM or Flame.


	28. Homeward Bound

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Homeward Bound

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Dinner was quiet that day. Kouji ate like nothing happened; yet he knew that the first chance they got, Kako and Kouichi would demand where Piximon was. Kouichi eyed his brother cautiously. He knew, although he told himself otherwise, that Kouji was behind Piximon's disappearance. He didn't know why and he didn't want to know why.

Kako wasn't at the table with them. She lay in her room, fast asleep. After the experience back at the inn, Ichiro had called a doctor. The doctor had advised Kouichi to make sure that she was "properly rested and given time to recuperate." The fever that had followed was claimed to be a result of extreme emotional experiences, something that could have possibly shocked Kako so much her normal body functions went haywire.

Kouichi let out a sigh and rose to his feet. It wasn't the same knowing the normally cheerful girl he knew was traumatized by some feeling he hadn't experienced. There had been a needle-prick feeling on the back of Kouichi's neck before Kako passed out, but before that, he remembered nothing. "I'm done," he announced, pushing his chair in. With a quick decline of more food and a polite exchange of good night, Kouichi walked straight into Kako's room to see if she was awake.

As soon as Kouichi opened the door he saw Kako move under the covers. If that wasn't enough proof that she was awake, the muffled sobs were.

Smiling gently, he walked up to her bedside after shutting the door behind him and kneeled down. "Kako," Kouichi murmured, "do you want to talk...?" He held his breath, expected her to scream or hit him. When neither came, Kouichi tried again, "Do you want anything to eat?"

That produced results, however negative they were in technicality. "NO!" Kako shouted, throwing her pillow in Kouichi's face. After that, she continued to let out muffled sobs with her back turned to Kouichi.

He moved onto the bed, sitting down just on the edge. "Kako," Kouichi said, "I'm really worried right now, okay? First, let me check if your fever is-" Before his hand couch touch the covers, Kako wrapped them tighter around her.

"It's gone," Kako told him dully.

Happy that she was talking again, Kouichi let out a sigh. His hand reached for the covers again. "Just let me check anyway, okay?" he asked softly, slightly pulling the covers away.

Kako yelled, "NO!" and furiously pulled the blankets around her.

Quickly, Kouichi yanked back his hand. _Her fever is worse than before_, Kouichi thought. He had just barely brushed it across her forehead. "Kako, you're burning up," he murmured, standing up.

"No," Kako yelled again, weaker than before.

Nevertheless, the boy made for the door. In a firm voice, Kouichi told her, "I'll go get some soup. You...just get some rest."

Her answer came out in a bare whisper. "No..." she tried to say, but nothing audible came out.

The protests remained unheard in Kouichi's ears as he walked into the kitchen to confront Satomi, who was doing the dishes. His cheeks flushed as he spoke to the lady. It wasn't that he didn't like her, but that he wasn't _used_ to talking to her. It was almost awkward. "U-uh..." he stuttered at first, unsure of what to call her. Satomi was too rude and unlike him. Mrs. Minamoto was awkward; she was his stepmother, too. Yet to call her as he called his own mother wouldn't work. Kouichi stood there, realizing his dilemma.

If she noticed, Satomi didn't show her acknowledgement of his awkwardness. Instead of being awkward as well, she smiled at Kouichi as she turned to him and addressed him by his name. "Yes, Kouichi?"

"D-do you...have any...soup or tea recipes...for fevers...?" Kouichi stammered, clenching his hands by his side. His brother and father were in the living room. _Watching TV_, Kouichi guessed.

Much to his relief, Satomi nodded. She pointed to the stove and murmured, "I'm making it now. Is she alright?" The look of concern on her face was truly genuine. It almost surprised Kouichi.

He was at a loss for words. "I..." Kouichi started, all traces of hesitance or uneasiness gone. "I...um, I mean...th-thank you," he told her gratefully, bowing deeply. _She noticed. She actually noticed_, Kouichi thought, amazed. The lady in front of him never ceased to amaze him, despite the fact that she could never match up to his own mother. His respect for her grew to another level.

Satomi seemed relief from the lack of tension in the air. She turned to the stove and checked the pot that was brewing. Almost absentmindedly she told him, "I heard the island leaves are used in the teas here. Supposedly each one carries special properties. I got two of every kind in case it was true. You never know, really. There...it's almost ready..." Satomi trailed off as she took out a cup and poured the contents of the pot in the cup. Before handing the cup to Kouichi, she warned him, "It's still very hot."

Nodding gratefully, Kouichi took the cup, ignoring the blazing heat. He carefully walked back to Kako's room, careful not to spill a drop. When he walked in, he found Kako sitting up, blankets still wrapped around her. "Here," he murmured, shutting the door with his foot. Kouichi walked over and held the cup in front of her. "Satomi told me it's still hot, so..." He trailed off and sat down beside Kako, still holding the cup in front of her.

"Thank you," Kako whispered. She dropped the blankets and accepted the cup, bringing it to her lips. Kouichi guessed the contents had cooled down or Kako was too hot to notice the heat of the liquid. Kako downed it all at once, then shut her eyes and leaned against Kouichi. "Please," she whispered, "please don't leave...I never meant...for Piximon...I...I never even..." Tears formed in the corner of her eyes as she tried to continue.

He wrapped his arms around her. "It isn't your fault," Kouichi told her firmly. He found he was repeating himself again and again as Kako continued to cry.

Kouichi wasn't sure what happened, but shortly after, Kako was asleep and darkness overcame him as well.

-------------------------------------

"You realize she'll probably never speak to you again."

"I know," Kouji snapped bitterly.

"I could tell Kouichi anytime."

"I could tell Kouichi you helped me," the bandana boy spat.

"I didn't help you. I merely appeared at a bad time and left shortly after."

"Spare me the lies, Duskmon," growled the boy. He slammed his palm down on the desk in front of him. Their vacation in Hawaii was over as of tomorrow morning. All Kouji had accomplished was because of Duskmon. It was because of Duskmon he had finished what he had finished, and he hated it.

The walls that separated his room from the hall and Kako's room from the hall were no barriers to the soft cries that could be heard. Each wail pierced through Kouji. Angrily, he swore and hit his desk again. "Could you _shut her up?_" he growled, turning to Duskmon. His eyes were narrowed dangerously.

Duskmon frowned, but shrugged. He slunk through the shadows, and after a few seconds, Kouji gave up on waiting for him to come back. The cries quieted, and he was left with peace.

He had another regret to bury deep within his soul. "_Hitomi no naka no, hitotsu no regret_," Kouji whispered softly. "I'm sorry it has to be this way, Kouichi."

-------------------------------------

Izumi had stayed over the night to allow Takuya to get some sleep along with Shinya. She watched as the two boys muttered and kicked each other in their sleep. Now sitting with the two at a late lunch and smiling to herself, Izumi thought, _Well Shinya's just like Takuya...almost_. The girl giggled and tried to silence herself as Shinya's hands reached up to pat the goggles he wore.

The previous evening, the two had left Shinya at the computer for a mere hour, deciding it was only fair. Videogames had lost their appeal after Izumi lost the twentieth round in a row against the young Kanbara. He didn't blame her. He was just bored. Takuya had slept and Izumi supervised.

But now, all she could think about was Kako. There was no call from her cousin or the twins since they had talked to Kouji that day. Kako would be back in the morning, but...

_She could have called_, Izumi thought, watching as Takuya scowled and hit Shinya's hand back.

"Hey, they're mine now!" Shinya whined, hitting his brother's shoulder.

Rolling his eyes, Takuya corrected, "I'm lending them to you. And it seems it was a total mistake to do so!" His hands crept up to take the goggles back.

The girl opened her mouth and immediately stopped, seeing the look on Takuya's face. She shivered. "Takuya, don't make that face," blurted Izumi. "You look like a zombie high on being dead."

Shinya burst out into giggles, pointing at his brother under the table. Instead of scowling, Takuya just grinned and said, "Well I do a damn great job of being a zombie, then!"

"Whatever..." Izumi murmured and shook her head. She smiled as she watched the two then wondered aloud, "Shouldn't Kako have called by now...?"

Takuya stopped. "Well..." He frowned, seeming to contemplate the reason. Finally, the boy shrugged, patting his goggle-deprived head. "You know, I bet she has her reasons. Like exploring the sites with Kouichi, swimming with Kouichi, talking to Kouichi, scaring and annoying Kouichi, making-er...making sand castles with Kouichi," Takuya said the last guess somewhat awkwardly, noticing Izumi's intense glare.

The younger Kanbara noticed, too. He pushed his plate towards the center of the table and inquired in a very innocent voice, "When do I get to go out on a date?"

Shocked out of words, Takuya gazed at his brother wide-eyed. The only sounds that came out of his mouth were incomprehensible. "Shinya, try when you're a year older than Takuya is now," Izumi suggested. "That way, the girls'll love you because you'll actually be mature."

"Hey, I'm mature!" Takuya argued.

The young boy smiled. "Okay!" he chirped, pushing his hands against the table to scoot his chair back. "Can we go now?" asked Shinya, looking to his brother and then Izumi for an answer.

Takuya nodded and said, "Yeah...and let's call Kouji while we're at it."

Izumi sent her boyfriend a strange look. "Takuya, they're sleeping now," she told him, standing up and placing her hands on her hips.

He stood up as well. "I know that. But I've always wanted to bug Kouji when he was sleeping!" Takuya admitted with a laugh.

"Takuya..."

As the headed out of the restaurant, the customers at the table two away from the one the Kanbara boys and Izumi had sat at chuckled.

"I bet he didn't know that," Hideki muttered under his breath. He swirled his cup of coffee, watching the liquid slosh back and forth in the cup.

Rai shook her head in exasperation. "Idiot. You know," she suddenly said, leaning back in her seat and gazing up at the ceiling, "I wonder if they can get through this okay."

An eyebrow rose. Hideki placed his cup down and asked, "You don't have faith in them?" He too leaned back in his chair and regarded the lady with an amused expression obvious on his face.

She shook her head. "No...I have faith. I just wonder if they have the will," whispered Rai. "If they don't..." Trailing off, Rai allowed her eyes to fall on Hideki. They held an almost childish fear in them. "Hideki, I need to te-...uh..." Unable to finish her sentence, Rai shut her mouth.

"Hm?"

"Nothing. We should go, too," she said quickly, rising to her feet.

The look on her face remained forever embedded in his mind. "Uh...right," Hideki muttered, standing up and pushing in his seat. _What was that about...?_

-------------------------------------

The morning was gray and silent. Fog descended on the island, matching everyone's mood.

"Well let's drive you to the airport," Mr. Minamoto sighed, scratching the back of his head. He found it awkward now, more than ever, that he was in the same room as his two sons.

Kouichi nodded silently and stood up. "I'll go see if Kako's ready," he murmured, walking to the girl's room.

The younger twin sat down at the table, not meeting his father's eyes. _At least...the gate will stay closed_, he told himself, tapping his fingers lightly on the table. His father must have noticed Kouji's mood, because he stayed quiet.

"Alright...Kako's ready," announced Kouichi quietly. He walked back to the table and gazed at his father blankly.

Glad that his son was talking to him, even if it was over something as pointless as this, Kousei smiled. He nodded and said, "Then I'll put the bags in the car."

The drive to the airport was quiet. Satomi sat in the front beside her husband and Kouichi was sandwiched in between Kako and Kouji. Kouji looked out the window, and there was no smile visible on his face. Kako fell asleep on Kouichi's shoulder; the fatigue from the previous day's events hadn't worn off.

They arrived at the airport in a matter of minutes. After somewhat indifferent and awkward goodbyes, the twins and Kako sat down and waited for the plane in the gate waiting area.

Five minutes before the boarding call, Kouichi stood up. He regarded his brother silently, then turned to Kako. _If I hadn't come, would you still be like this? Maybe...we'll never really know_, he thought. A hand fell onto her shoulder and Kouichi squatted down. "Smile, please?" he said softly, looking up in her face. When they locked eyes, Kouichi told her, "I've got to go now, and I doubt I'll get back before you, but whatever you do, smile while doing it. Promise me."

Her lips pressed together tightly, and it was then that Kouichi realized she was trembling. He stood up and sighed. "See ya," he whispered to his brother. He removed his jacket and his cap, placed them in Kako's hands, then turned around and walked off.

_Going as he came_. Kouji allowed a thin smile to form on his lips. _Very noble, Kouichi_, he thought, _Very noble_. The bandana boy turned to Kako and rose to his feet as everyone began to board the plane. "Kako, let's go," he told her bluntly, picking up the bags and heading towards the gate.

Kako followed him wordlessly, her own bags in hand. Kouichi's hat was placed on her head, and her jacket was in one arm. As they boarded the plane and slipped into their seats, Kako whispered, "Later...Piximon."

-------------------------------------

Kouichi raced out of the airport, ignoring the chill breeze.

"Hey!" a voice called out.

Immediately, Kouichi turned in the direction of the voice and bowed quickly. "Ryuusei," he addressed the other boy, looking around for some place he could digivolve.

A hard glare was concentrated on Ryu's face. He walked up to Kouichi and held out a fisted hand. "Hold out your hand," he commanded.

The boy let out a sigh. "Listen, I really don't have time-"

"_Do it_," Ryu growled. Reluctantly, Kouichi obliged. There was the feeling of something dropping in his hand, but he didn't have a chance to ask anything before Ryu said, "I expect you to take care of Kako. You can digivolve into Velgemon there." He stopped talking and pointed to a large building. "It's a helicopter zone, but it's abandoned at the moment. Listen, I hate you for taking Kako and all, but..." With great difficulty, he continued, "But I do respect you. Don't you dare use that for anything stupid. You'll know when to use it. In the meantime, make sure your brother doesn't hurt Kako anymore than he has. I...I went to the forest yesterday, after Kako collapsed. Piximon...well, he's gone now, but...the egg he gave you-keep that safe. Got it?" There was a stolid look on Ryu's face.

Without warning, Kouichi broke out into a smile. Letting out a soft breath that was more of a sigh and closing his eyes, he murmured, "A lot of orders, but thanks for the tips." Kouichi's eyes opened. "That egg is..." he trailed off as Ryuusei nodded. Kouichi inclined his head gratefully. "Then, Ryu, I'll tell Kako you said 'hi.'" He was about to run off, but stopped. Turning around, the boy inquired, "Kendo?" Ryu nodded again. Kouichi smiled again. "Maybe once this is over, you and Kouji could have a match," Kouichi whispered softly. "Thank you!" he yelled out, breaking into a run.

Duskmon appeared by his side. _You realize what Marise meant now, don't you?_ He glided through the shadows with Kouichi.

It wasn't until they reached the building that Kouichi answered. "Yeah," he confessed, bringing out his D-Tector. "Well, I'm too lazy to take the stairs, so Spirit Evolution!" he laughed, digivolving into Duskmon.

_Lazy_, Duskmon's voice sounded.

Kouichi concentrated on reaching the top. _Yeah, yeah_. Once at the top, he muttered, "Slide Evolution."

That feeling from before...the restless and unending will to fly that lay within him...all poured out as he digivolved into Velgemon. Piximon was forgotten, Kako was forgotten, Kouji was forgotten. All Kouichi saw was the way home.

-------------------------------------

The flight attendant beamed at Kouji. _How cute_, she thought, noticing the sleeping Kako resting her head on his shoulder. "Would you like anything to drink?" the woman asked politely.

Kouji shot her a cold glare. "No."

She remained smiling, unaffected by Kouji's glare. "And your friend?"

Startled, Kouji turned to Kako. _Kako...? She should have some soup or something,_ Kouji realized. His mouth opened as he turned to the flight attendant. After several seconds of trying to spew out words that made no sense in his head, he asked, "Do you have soup or hot tea?"

"Tea? I believe we should...I'll go check," she told him, walking off.

The bandana boy turned to Kako and pried her off his shoulder. "Kako," he murmured, "do you want tea...?"

Drowsily, Kako found herself swaying back and forth. It looked more like Kouji was moving than herself. In a tired voice, she told him, "I want to sleep." Kako pushed his hands away and leaned against the window.

Kouji grabbed a hold of her and pulled Kako into a sitting position. Undoing the latch that held back the tray on the seat in front of her, he growled, "Not an option." The attendant returned with the tea and Kouji accepted it with a quick thank you. As he turned back to Kako and placed the cup on the tray, Kouji found Kako was asleep again. _Damn,_ he thought, swearing under his breath, _does she hate me that much?_ He shook her awake again.

"Let me sleep," Kako snapped, whacking his hand away. Kouji continued to shake her until she finally sat up and slapped him. "Damn it, Kouji, you're worse than Piximon! I _don't_ want tea, I _don't_ want to talk, and I _don't_ want to be sitting by you right now! Can you not leave me alone?" she yelled.

The silence on the plane had broken. "NO," Kouji growled, rising to his feet and turning away from Kako, "I can't! Screw it, Kako, I don't _care_. Go sit by some other damn idiot!" He stood there for several seconds, waiting for a response. He found that instead of talking, Kako had fallen asleep again. _She...totally ignored me_, he noticed, slumping back into his seat. _Wow, she hates me that much_.

Kako startled him as he settled back into his seat. In a quiet voice, she told him, "I'm sorry." She was still resting her head against the window with her eyes shut, but Kouji felt as if there was something different about her.

"Well I don't really care if you're sorry or not, Kako. I'm trying to help you, and if you don't want me to help, you can just tell me," he snapped in return. Letting out an annoyed sigh, Kouji folded his arms and faced the aisle. Finally, he turned his head to look over his shoulder. "You aren't going to ask me what happened to Piximon?" he asked her softly.

Kako had sat up and was now staring at her tea. She shook her head. Picking up the tea, Kako whispered, "If I asked you, you would lie. If you lied, it would make it worse. Kouichi told me to smile, but it makes me tired just thinking about it." There was silence as she sipped the tea. "He's flying right below us, you know."

Suddenly interested, Kouji asked, "Kouichi?"

There was a nod.

An unwarranted smile broke the icy look on Kouji's face. He chuckled a little and leaned back in his seat. "Sometimes," he murmured, "he worries way too much."

_You have no idea_, Kako thought to herself, occupying herself with the tea.

-------------------------------------

By flying directly under the plane until a while before it landed, Kouichi was able to fly faster and make sure there were no accidents. _You never know_, he told himself as he dedigivolved on the roof opposite his house, _Kanaye could bomb the airport_. Smiling to himself as he descended the stairs of the building, Kouichi murmured, "I wonder what Mom will say..."

_She's right down there, you know_, Duskmon pointed out to the boy.

Kouichi nearly jumped. "Duskmon," he hissed, "get back in my room before someone sees you!"

With a snort, Duskmon demanded, "Like?"

"Uhhh..." Kouichi stopped at the base of the stairs to scratch his head. Finally he shrugged and said, "I guess no one at this time, but it doesn't matter. Get going!" With a wave of a hand, he motioned the digimon to go.

Not much to his amazement, Duskmon left, but only after muttering under his breath for at least a minute.

Kouichi raced to the front of his house just as his mother came out. "Mom," he murmured, suddenly feeling extremely awkward.

Miss Kimura gazed at her son for several seconds before she broke into a smile. "Kouichi, you never said good-bye, you know," she scolded jokingly, ruffling his hair as she walked towards the car.

The boy let out a nervous laugh. _It's good to be home_, he thought. Running to catch up to her, he told her, "Sorry, I wanted to get there as soon as possible. Duskmon wasn't too blunt, was he?" He could imagine Duskmon just _trying_ to scare his mother.

Laughing, Tomoko shook her head. "No...he was rather polite about it," she murmured, pausing to think as she opened the door. Finally, she got in the car and opened the door for Kouichi. "But for now, let's go get your brother."

-------------------------------------

Kouji pulled another bag off the belt. "I'm _sorry_," he muttered for the twenty-fifth time.

"Would you _shut up_ with the 'sorry's?" Kako growled, wishing she could throw her backpack at him. The only reason she didn't was because of the digi-egg in it.

He sighed as another bag passed by that wasn't theirs. "Listen, Kako," Kouji said, turning to the girl. They had all their bags, and he didn't exactly have to pay any attention to the passing baggage anymore. "Let's get walking, and just listen, okay?"

Kako shrugged. "Okay," she murmured, picking her bags up and walking to the exit without waiting for Kouji.

"Wait!" Kouji yelled, dragging the remaining bags behind him as he tried to catch up to Kako. _Great, I'm overwhelmed with guilt and she's not letting me apologize. Damn it, I hate girls. It's a good thing she can't read minds or I'd _really_ be dead_, he thought to himself, sighing in relief as they reached the room. "You see, Kako, I-"

Instead of listening, Kako pretended to be absorbed in looking out the window. "Nope, no Hideki yet," she muttered. "Maybe I should actually call him now..." She walked up to Kouji and held out her hand. "Cell phone please."

Trying not to yell, Kouji growled, "Would you listen? Look, the entire incident with Piximon, _while_ executed by me, wasn't completely my fault! Do you know what could have happened if he was still here?" Both of his hands fell on her shoulders and he shook her to get the meaning through. "Kako, he could have opened that gate," Kouji told her in a stern voice.

Wordlessly, Kako pushed his hands away. Turning around, she muttered, "Spare me the excuses."

"It's not an excuse!" Kouji yelled, grabbing her arm and turning her to face him.

"Let me go." Her eyes flickered.

The bandana boy remained adamant. "Just listen then," he snapped, grabbing a hold of his other arm as she tried to struggle out of his grip.

Kako's eyes narrowed on him. She exhaled sharply. In a steady voice, Kako commanded, "Kouji, _let me go_."

"Damn it Kako, why can't you understand?" Kouji hissed, leaning forward.

Eyes wide, Kako tried stepping back, but Kouji moved forward with her. "Wh-what are y-" she tried to ask, but was cut off when his lips collided against her own. Her heart was hammering, and everything was far from understood at that moment.

Someone cleared their throat from behind her. Reddening, Kako struggled to push Kouji away and stepped back into someone else. Kouji pulled away of his own accord and gazed at the person behind her. "Kouichi," he murmured, taking a slight step back. "Uh-"

"You know, Mom was honking at least _three_ times, and you guys still didn't see. Are you going to come? Oh, Kako, apparently you're spending the night at our house because Hideki is...busy," Kouichi informed them, helping Kouji pick up his luggage. "Hurry up. You two are slow."

Angrily, Kako hit Kouji's arm. "Jerk," she muttered, picking up her own luggage and storming after the older twin.

The bandana boy followed, letting out a sigh. _Well I tried. She might as well give me credit for that_, he thought grumpily. _And Kouichi could at _least_ be jealous or something_.

"Kouji, hurry up!" Kouichi yelled from the car.

"Coming!"

-------------------------------------

"So how was it?" Izumi asked the next day as they sat in the restaurant across from the arcade for an early lunch, eyeing her cousin nervously. Kako seemed to have an evil aura about her.

Kako shrugged indifferently and stared at Shinya. That morning, Izumi and Takuya had informed the twins and Kako about the events that had passed in their absence. "So...Kanaye...was on the move while we were gone. Great going, Kouichi. You were really needed in Hawaii," she muttered, her eyes moving to the boy who was poking at his food.

Startled, Kouichi looked up and reddened. He tried to explain himself but ended up stuttering, "I-wh-um...s-I...but..." Eventually the words stopped coming and Kouichi shut his mouth. "Sorry," he murmured, looking away.

"I didn't mean it like that, idiot," Kako snapped. Noticing all eyes on her, Kako shifted uncomfortably. Under her breath, she muttered, "Way to go."

"I'm sorry," Kouichi mumbled again, more miserably this time than before.

In an annoyed voice, Kako told him, "I had this conversation with your dear twin last night, and I don't want to have it with you." She turned to Shinya and asked, "So Takuya gave you his goggles?"

Happily, Shinya nodded. He then asked, "Where's Piximon?"

Kouichi froze and Kouji, who had just come over to their table, stopped in his tracks. Clearing his throat, Kouji turned around and headed back to the table Tomoki and Junpei sat at.

"What's with him?" Takuya asked, raising an eyebrow.

Her eyes were devoid of emotion as she looked up. Allowing her eyes to slip shut, Kako placed her hands palm down on the table and pushed herself up. Quietly, she told them, "Piximon is detained at the moment and may never come back."

Eyes softening, Kouichi murmured, "Kako...you don't-"

"Be quiet. I'm going home," Kako snapped, walking out of the restaurant wordlessly.

Takuya followed Kako with his eyes. After she was out the door, he turned to Kouichi, who sank back in his seat. There was no smile on Takuya's face as he asked, "What happened?" It was a rare moment that he felt left in the dark and felt the need to be informed.

Uneasy, Kouichi sent a glance at his brother. Kouji was absentmindedly nodding to all of Junpei and Tomoki's questions. "See, it happened two days ago, and I'm not sure _how_ it happened, but..." He trailed off and drew a breath. In a quiet voice, Kouichi began, "Kako and I were at the inn and Kouji decided to take Piximon with him..."

-------------------------------------

Kako threw the door open and saw her bags blocking the entrance to the kitchen. Annoyed, she slammed the door shut, tossed her shoes off and picked up her bags. After a journey to her room that ended with her tossing her bags _out_ of her room, Kako snapped, "Hideki if you're making out with Rai, do so _out_ of the house," and fell on her bed, not bothering to close the door.

She wanted to cry, she wanted to scream. She wanted to leave the world and never come back.

"Go away," she muttered, ignoring the stinging of her eyes and focusing instead on the gentle footsteps that entered the room.

Rai sat on Kako's bed, a sad smile on her face. Gently brushing Kako's hair out of her face, Rai murmured, "Bad vacation?" It was more a statement than a question, but nevertheless, she decided the girl ought to have some choice in answering.

Sitting up, Kako turned to Rai. "Does it hurt this much?" she asked in a whisper. Her eyes were overfilled with tears that spilled out endlessly.

Not knowing how to answer, Rai wrapped her arms around the girl and pulled her into a hug. In a low murmur, she told Kako, "I'm sorry, Kako, but there's no easy cure. You have to live out the pain and eventually you move on." As the cries grew louder, Rai tightened her hold. "Keep crying...for now, I'll stay with you, okay?" she whispered.

_It hurts,_ Rai thought, _like being forgotten_. _As long as you don't forget Piximon, Kako, you'll be able to be happy_. _Smile again, soon_. The cries quieted down, reduced to chokes and sniffs. A soft sigh escaped Rai. "Sometimes, we can't stop losing what we love, but every second you try to fight back is worth it," she whispered. _Don't make my mistake_.

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A/N-

Several things: Parents, bad chapter, realization I messed up Ch. 26 (I get in such a hurry to post I never remember what to fix), and the fact that Mr. Wada isn't singing in Digimon Savers contribute to my unhappiness. Especially the first and the last items. The chapters I can fix (and I have fixed 26). Parents are naturally nagging. But Kouji Wada isn't singing...:goes to cry in a corner:. I also cried for thirty seconds while writing Kako's part (in the beginning) because I realized: Piximon's gone!

And sorry Kouji (Minamoto, not Wada). XP Didn't mean to make you Mr. Evil-Piximon-Killer.

Thank you for the reviews (and putting up with my idiocy!)! Big thank yous to: **Lady Hikari-Yami, GemmaniGirl, Winter's Light**

Review or PM or Flame!


	29. Renewed Crisis, Revealed Resolve

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Renewed Crisis, Revealed Resolve

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The days passed and they all found themselves in school again. Kako and Kouji hadn't talked to each other for days, Kouichi occasionally walked to school with Kako for fear she'd do something rash, and Shinya was back to his normal, hyper self. Yet tensions still existed in the air, and Kouichi felt as if he was caught in the middle of it.

"Is Kako awake?" Kouichi inquired, stepping inside as Hideki motioned him to come in. He had grown slightly accustomed to coming into the house. Now it was more of the thought of Kako that scared him.

Quietly, Hideki nodded. "She's pretty bummed out still," he muttered, shutting the door.

Kouichi let out a sigh. He allowed a hand to slip into his pocket. "I know."

"You're helping her out a lot."

"I guess..." His eyes lowered to the ground.

Leaning back against the wall, Hideki grinned and asked, "So when are you two going out?"

"WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH ANYTHING?"

"Morning, what's all the yelling about?" Kako mumbled, walking out of the hall. She was rubbing her eyes, trying to stay awake.

Reddening, Kouichi cleared his throat. "Sorry, did we wake you up?" he asked instead of answering her question.

Kako shook her head. Just as she turned around and marched straight back to her room, she said, "No..."

Silence followed as Kouichi gazed at the ground with great discomfort. Hideki was eyeing him almost curiously, and the sound of several doors opening and closing could be heard.

"Oh, Rai, you're up!" Hideki suddenly exclaimed, prying his eyes off of Kouichi.

There was a sound of someone choking. The two adults turned to Kouichi. One hand rested on his throat, while another was extended with a finger pointing at Rai. "M-Ms. Kawai...?" he stuttered, gazing wide-eyed in disbelief.

"You didn't know...?" Kako walked out, eyes dull and void of emotion, just as they had been seconds before. "They're starting to annoy me, but that's okay, I guess."

Ms. Kawai just laughed. "Do you two want a ride?" she asked, smiling at Kouichi and waving.

Composing himself, Kouichi shook his head. Noticing Kako, he added, "Unless Kako does...?" There was a hint in his voice that clearly revealed he hoped her to say no. Hideki must have noticed this, and Kouichi only guessed he could by the amused look he sent in Rai's direction.

Much to Kouichi's relief, Kako shook her head. She picked up her backpack and headed straight for the door. "We'll walk," she whispered, not meeting their eyes at all.

Waving goodbye to both Hideki and Ms. Kawai, Kouichi followed Kako outside, smiling as the warm rays of the sun hit his face. He kept his pace just one step behind Kako's. "It's...a beautiful day," he commented, hoping to start a conversation with the girl.

"Hmm..." came Kako's response. Her eyes were glued to the ground.

A small frown appeared on Kouichi's face. Again, he tried, "So how's life?"

"Mmmh..."

"Did you finish your homework?"

"Mmmhmmm..."

"Uh...Kako?"

"Hm?"

One eyebrow rose, and an annoyed look was fixed on his face. "Can you speak in words I can understand?" Kouichi demanded. He halted and held his ground.

Kako stopped as well. She took one good look at him before answering, "No." Wordlessly, Kako continued walking, ignoring the fact that she left Kouichi behind.

Without another word, Kouichi ran after her, picking up his pace so he was one step ahead of Kako and looking at her. "What is with you, Kako? It's like you're a zombie. You can't reduce yourself to this!" he snapped furiously.

It didn't take any more words to get to her. "You know, Kouichi," Kako began, drawing herself up to stand up straight and gaze into his eyes, "I never asked you to baby-sit me. I can take care of myself. _Don't_ say you aren't babysitting me!" She cut him off before he could protest. "Why else would you be coming to pick me up every morning for the past week? I'm not blind, Kouichi. I _don't_ need your help, okay? Piximon's gone, that's fine. But maybe you should think about the people who _actually_ need help, like your stupidly insane brother!" she yelled, storming off.

_I'm not babysitting you, Kako_, Kouichi thought, scowling and kicking the cement ground. He dug his hands into his pockets and continued his way to school. _Am I?_

-------------------------------------

School had become routine again for all of them, mostly for Kako and Kouji. The rest had a difficult time settling in knowing very well that the two would be at each other's necks (at least Kako) if given the chance. Kouji used every possible excuse to avoid the girl, ranging from having to make up a test and missing lunch to having to go to the bathroom.

Kouichi, not wanting to be the middleman but wanting the two to be on good terms, was completely unsure of what to do. Duskmon wandered off most of the time, Lowemon was busy doing things Kouichi was unsure of, and that left Kouichi to talk to Takuya, Izumi, Junpei, Tomoki and, of course, Shinya. Talking to Rai and Hideki would, while producing results, worry the two even more.

Lunch was completely dedicated to discussions about the two. Kako ate with Naoko, Kouji cloistered himself up in the classroom (which was Ogata-less during lunch hours), and Kouichi worried over issues that didn't necessarily concern him.

"What if Kouji becomes a serial killer because of this whole thing?" Kouichi wondered aloud, twitching nervously at the thought. The silence of that lunch had gotten him thinking, and at the moment, thinking wasn't good for Kouichi.

Izumi rolled her eyes. Punching Takuya as he tried to sneak a hand over to grab Kouichi's food (he had forgotten his own lunch), she told the boy, "Kouji _won't_ become a serial killer. I'm sure they'll be fine. I've been talking to Duskmon-"

This caught Kouichi's attention. "HE'S BEEN TALKING TO YOU AND NOT ME?" he screamed.

"Yes...anyway, we've been talking, and your little devil of a friend has a plan. He's not the nicest, but definitely the brightest. Quite unfortunate for some of us," Izumi commented, smiling wryly.

Pretending to be offended, Kouichi snorted and folded his arms. "Well, what do you expect with brains like mine?" he retorted with a grin.

The wry smile turned to a sly smile. Staring Kouichi straight in the eye, Izumi inquired, "When do you plan to use those brains to ask Kako out?" She nearly burst out into laughter as Kouichi's eyes bulged out in surprise.

Nervously, Kouichi laughed. In a desperate attempt to avoid answering the question, he asked a question of his own. "Uh...so...what's Duskmon's plan?" he asked, twitching nervously once more.

Izumi just laughed. "That's for you to find out."

-------------------------------------

"What do you want, Duskmon? I'm _busy_," Kouji spat, not looking up from the computer screen. _One percent completed_..._at this rate, it'll take days. I guess that'll give them enough time to get together_.

Duskmon stared silently at Kouji. "I'll be back later if you want me to."

The bandana boy looked up from the screen. With a sigh, he leaned back in his chair. _I never liked suspense_. "Please, continue," he said, voice dripping with heavy sarcasm.

The digimon nodded. "Very well. I want you to tell Kouichi the truth," he said, calmly staring at Kouji. After all, it wasn't the least bit like him to do otherwise.

Kouji sat up with a start. A furious glare was fixed on his features as he narrowed his eyes on Duskmon. "_What_?" he demanded sharply. Before Duskmon could answer, Kouji blurted, "NO."

It seemed as if Duskmon had been expecting such an answer. Expert in matters such as this, he turned around, turning his head to the side so he could catch view of Kouji through his peripheral vision. "Then I'll simply have to tell him myself," he told the boy. Duskmon took a step forward and awaited the reaction.

As expected, Kouji jumped to his feet. His hands slammed down on the table on either side of the laptop. He hissed, "You will do no such thing, got it?" After several deep breaths, Kouji closed all the windows and shut the laptop. Then turning his attention to Duskmon, Kouji exhaled heavily. "A deal?" he suggested, hoping he was level-headed enough to get through with making the deal.

"Go on," Duskmon simply replied.

Careful to review the details in his head, Kouji said slowly, "I tell Kouichi...the truth...and...and you get Kako and Kouichi together. Nothing will work if the two don't get together." He gazed up at Duskmon. "So...?"

"Done. You know, you should be on good terms with her yourself," Duskmon replied with a laugh, disappearing into the shadows.

Shaken, Kouji slunk back into his seat. A hand rose itself to place itself on his forehead. _Please don't tell me...something bad will happen_.

-------------------------------------

Kako laughed, feeling carefree for the first time in a long time. The wind blew gently in her face as she chatted lively with Naoko under the pine tree. Yet the feeling that something was wrong couldn't be shaken off. Smiling, Kako stood up and brushed herself off. "One second," she told the other girl. _What is this about...?_ Angrily, she walked off to find a place away from everyone else.

"Alright, Duskmon, what do you want?" Kako snapped icily, feeling irritable.

Slipping out of the shadows, Duskmon smirked at her. "Well...edgy, aren't we?" he questioned, careful not to get to the point too soon. The last thing he needed was an angry Kako on his case.

A shaky sigh escaped Kako. Her eyes shut. Calmly, she murmured, "No. What do you want?" As she repeated her question, Kako's eyes slowly opened, revealing held back anger. Obviously, she was ready to find an excuse to let it out.

He was careful to take it one at a time. "Would you like to know something, Kako?" Duskmon asked, tone completely innocent.

Kako seemed to be catching on. _When does he use that tone with me-or _anyone_ for that matter?_ Curiously, she leaned back against the nearby lockers and demanded, "What?" Her eyes were still narrowed onto the digimon.

The digimon shrugged. _Lure her in_, he told himself. Aloud, he inquired, "Are you sure you want to know?"

_What the hell is he playing at?_ Raising an eyebrow, Kako returned, "What do you mean...?" Her arms folded and her head tilted down, but her eyes remained on Duskmon.

"About Piximon-oh, I'm sorry...am I pouring salt on wounds?" Duskmon sounded perfectly innocent once more. His face completely matched his tone. When Kako pushed off the lockers and glared at him, Duskmon just smirked. "So sorry...would you like to know the real reason behind your dear plushie's death?" he sneered. _I should get paid for this_...

Time froze for Kako. Her breath hitched, nearly coming to a stop. Swallowing and trying to breath once more, she demanded in a low growl, "What are you talking about?"

"First, you _will_ do as I ask you to do. After all, there is that favor you owe me from long ago..."

-------------------------------------

Kouichi sighed as he sank down against the wall. The morning's events got to him yet again. "What should I do...?" he murmured, lifting his head back to gently collide with the wall. His hand met his forehead soon after. With hope to exhale his troubles away, Kouichi shut his eyes.

Footsteps echoed throughout the hallway, but Kouichi didn't bother to open his eyes. A soft voice murmured, "Hey...Kouichi."

"Kouji," the boy addressed his brother in turn, too tired from thinking to move a muscle.

Beside him, he could hear Kouji sit down. The scratching gave him the image of feet sliding down the ground. "Listen...uh...I..." Kouji fell silent for a while, unsure of what to say. He drew a breath and started again. "Kouichi, I really have to tell you something," the younger twin whispered. He sounded almost afraid and even looked it as he turned to his brother.

By now, Kouichi's eyes were wide open. He calmly gazed in his brother's direction and waited for the boy to continue. Quickly, he prompted the boy to continue by hastily saying, "Go on." While not wanting to pressure Kouji into telling him whatever he seemed to have difficulty confessing, Kouichi wondered if his silence had pressured the other boy.

Kouji looked at the ground between them. Miserably, he murmured, "That day...when I took Piximon...and...well, you have to understand Kouichi, I don't even know why I didn't want to tell you this, but it makes sense in a way. Kouichi, I just...this entire mess is my fault, but I...you see..." His eyes squeezed shut. Kouji drew his knees up and rested his head on them. "I'm really, really sorry," he whispered.

The strange tremble that ran about the younger boy was starting to scare Kouichi. "Kouji, make sense," commanded the older twin, trying to remain calm himself.

"Promises...they say promises are meant to be broken. I know that has nothing to do with this...but..."

The older twin rose to his knees. There was a worried look in his eyes, but only concern showed on his face as he stretched out his hands towards Kouji. "Stop babbling and spit it out!" Kouichi snapped, grabbing his brother's shoulders and shaking him vigorously.

A yell answered him as Kouji finally told him, "Don't you get it? It was Duskmon! I couldn't kill Piximon because I didn't have Lobomon! I asked Duskmon to kill Piximon after I knocked him out!"

Kouichi fell backward as if an invisible blow sent him flying back. After a while of scrambling on the floor, he managed to rise to his feet. _I'm at fault_, he repeated to himself in his head. _It was never Kouji. It was all my fault. No wonder she hates me. It's my fault_.

"Please," Kouji whispered desperately, "don't be mad at Duskmon...I'm sorry, Kouichi...say something!" He watched his brother with anxious eyes that widened as Kouichi turned around. _I'm so helpless_, Kouji thought, wishing he hadn't gotten involved in any of this.

"I..."

Kouji snapped out of his reverie and stood up. "Y-yeah...?" There was a sign of hope. He could almost taste it.

"I'm sorry...Kouji. I didn't know Duskmon..." _Is that why he wanted to go to Hawaii...?_ Kouichi clenched his hands into fists. _Kako must really hate me_...

The drama of the moment suddenly escaped Kouji. Curiously, he rose an eyebrow and took a step towards his brother wondering, _He totally mistook my words, huh?_ "Kouichi, this isn't-" he started.

Immediately, Kouichi snapped, "NO. Just...forget it!" A hand extended itself back towards Kouji as a wave. "I...uh...I think I heard the bell ring. L-later..."

_He's lost it. We have ten minutes._ Kouji frowned as he watched his brother walk away. _He's going to dig his own grave_..._I can only hope Duskmon did his part without causing too much damage_.

-------------------------------------

It was one step at a time. She could handle this. One step. Another step. Stepping _forward_. Forward. She was going forward, not back.

Did she want to go back? No. The past was the past. She had to let it go. She didn't want to go back, did she?

Of course...she did. _Life is too short_, Kako thought, wincing as she tripped over a raised tile and stumbled forward several more steps than she had intended to. There was no time to react and she slid onto the ground, hands and feet sprawling out in separate directions. Slowly, Kako picked herself up and winced, rubbing her arms. The sun was shining brightly, but she felt cold.

"Where...is he...?" she wondered aloud. Knowing well that it would take a great deal of time just to find Kouji, she had placed her backpack in her locker. _Why am I doing this anyway...?_ Irritated, she kicked at the ground. Just the memory of her deal with Duskmon irked her.

-FLASHBACK-

"_What favor?_" _Kako asked, masking her uneasiness with a blank look_.

_Duskmon noticed and laughed_. _He leered at her and asked_, "_Afraid I'll ask something of you that you'll be too afraid to do?_" _When Kako paled, Duskmon laughed once more_. "_No...I'm not a sadist, Kako_," _he told her_.

_Under her breath, the girl muttered,_ "_I find that hard to believe_."

_The digimon hid a smile_. "_Oh, that hurt_," _he said_. _No emotion was evident_. "_Let's get to business. You'll do all of the several things I ask of you to_. _You will accept Kouji's apology for Piximon and hear him out. You will, no matter what Kouichi does_, _says, or happens to him, keep to Kouichi and not betray him. You will also finish Marise's diary and read it to its end_. _The last thing we need is an ignorant Ophanimon_," _joked Duskmon_. _There was no trace of amusement on his face when he said this though, and that worried Kako the most_.

_Picking her words carefully, Kako told him_, "_You know, I granted you_ one _last favor_." _Automatically folding, her arms tensed_.

"_I know_."

_Kako smiled triumphantly, knowing that her point had gotten through_. _She held her breath as she looked upon Duskmon with a feeling of superiority_.

"_So I could stay to Kouichi, not talk to Kouji till the end of times and read the diary whenever I want, technically_," _she told him, eyes narrowing_.

_Endless depths narrowed onto her_. _Lifting up a blade and gazing at the mirroring metal, Duskmon replied lazily_, "_And just as technically, I could...'accidentally' let loose my blades on someone through Kouichi_." _He smiled wryly as Kako turned pale again_. _It was almost as amusing as reading Kouichi's mind_. "_I may be fading, Kako, but I still have power over him_," _Duskmon told her calmly_. _This was hardly the time to laugh, especially when there was the possibility that his plans would go awry_.

Would he...? _Kako shivered at the thought_. Better to not risk it than to experience and regret, _she decided_, _lifting her foot and stomping viciously on a runaway flier for the upcoming junior prom_. "_Fine_," _Kako snapped, venom dripping as she continued_, "_but hurt anyone and you're dead, got it?_"

"_I'll be checking up to make sure you do this, Kako_," _Duskmon murmured as he slipped into the shadows_.

-END FLASHBACK-

Of course right after she had cursed loudly and received the attention of several schoolmates, all upper classmen and boys much to her chagrin. There wasn't much to say after that.

Kako's eyes narrowed on the hall ahead of her. _To apologize to Kouji and accept his apology_, she contemplated, _or to read the rest of the diary...?_ A smile formed on her lips.

"I'm off to read the diary, the wonderful diary of-oh, what am I doing?" Kako muttered when she realized what she was singing. "It's way off beat."

She shrugged and spun around, heading back to her locker. It wasn't so bad if she was doing things out of order. Duskmon just wanted to make sure she got everything done. Reading the diary first wouldn't affect Kouji's apology. What difference did it make?

A light, carefree feeling carried Kako the rest of the way; she even skipped the remainder of the distance, smiling all the way.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi spent the hours between school and the supposed training at the bookstore locked up in his room, staring endlessly at the blank paper before him. There was no hint of feeling, no hint of emotion. Every few minutes, he would groan as he shifted positions and tried to not think about Kako and Piximon. He could almost see Duskmon carry through with the strike.

Emotionless. Deadly. Evil.

Was he evil, too?

Patamon had told him that inheriting the spirit of Darkness didn't mean he was evil. It was what he did with it that mattered.

_But what _am_ I doing with it? Nothing. Nothing useful_, Kouichi argued with himself, slamming a fist on the table in front of him. _It was Duskmon, wasn't it? Duskmon and not Kouji that I should be worried about. And yet, all this time...I thought_...

He had the pieces of the puzzle, but he hadn't placed them together correctly.

Quietly, Kouichi slipped out of his room. _Maybe I can get there early_, he decided. Kouichi slipped on his shoes, put on his jacket and headed for the bookstore.

-------------------------------------

The next morning, Kouichi didn't go to Kako's house to wait for her. The next morning, Kako wasn't in the unusual mood she had been in for the past few days. She was almost cheerful and, surprisingly, had stopped by Kouichi's place in the morning.

"Is Kouichi still here?" she asked Miss Kimura, smiling. It wasn't the biggest smile, but a smile nevertheless.

Returning the smile, Miss Kimura nodded and stepped to the side to let Kako in. "Kouichi," she called out. "Kako's here. Wake up!" She walked over to go check on her older son.

_Lazy_, thought Kako, stepping inside. Her smile faded when she caught sight of Kouji.

Kouji was sprawled on his stomach down on the floor. The video game controller was in his hands, and his eyes were focused on the TV. He was completely oblivious to the fact that she had entered.

Kako's promise to herself clicked into mind. The entire day had been swarmed with homework that she had forgotten. _Well, I might as well start now, even though I haven't gotten a chance to look at the diary_, she decided, gently lowering her bag to the floor and walking up to Kouji.

"Hey."

His head turned her way and a startled look was his greeting.

For a while Kako stood there, unsure of what to say to him. It seemed pointless to talk at all, but eventually, she did and said, "You're up early."

Her lousy attempt at a conversation worked. However slow it was, Kouji eventually responded, "I guess..." Yet in the back of his mind, he couldn't help but wonder, _What is she doing...?_ The thought that she was talking to him was frightening, and Kouji could only suspect Duskmon was somehow involved.

"Kouichi's being lazy...?"

"Hm..." Kouji shrugged and reached over to turn off the console. There was only silence as he sat up and began winding up the controller.

Again Kako tried, "Was he up all night?"

The silence lasted until Kouji rose to his feet and shrugged. "I...guess," he murmured. Their eyes met and locked.

"Accepted," Kako said, casually waving towards the boy.

Kouji blinked. "What?"

"Your apology."

"Uh..." For lack of anything to say, Kouji stood there, staring at Kako. _I'll never get girls_, he realized.

"No time for breakfast, bye Mom!" came a yell. Kouichi dashed out from his bedroom, jacket halfway on and backpack slung over his shoulder. He was about to race straight out of the house when he caught sight of Kako and skidded to a stop.

Returning Kouichi's blank look with one of her own, Kako murmured, "Morning to you too..."

His response came quickly. "I wasn't oversleeping," Kouichi protested.

"I...never said you were..."

"I wasn't up late last night!"

"I..."

"So, how was your morning?" Kouichi suddenly asked. He walked into the kitchen to get his lunch.

The younger twin rolled his eyes. "Kouichi," he muttered, "why are you going insane?"

There was confusion evident in the air. Putting on his jacket properly, Kouichi said, "I...I'm not going insane..." He pulled his backpack on.

Kouji just shook his head. He was about to say something when Kako interrupted.

The girl was at the door, pulling on her backpack. With a sigh, she said, "Let's get going. We have five minu-"

"FIVE MINUTES?" Kouichi yelled, bolting out the door.

After exchanging looks with Kouji, Kako followed, leaving the bandana boy alone. _What's Duskmon thinking?_ The boy wondered, kicking the nearby cover of a game.

"Kouji, shouldn't you be going to?" his mother called out.

Snapped out of his contemplation, Kouji looked in the direction of the kitchen. "Y-yeah...I'm going now. Bye!" he yelled, grabbing his bag and racing out the door.

-------------------------------------

-FLASHBACK-

"_You really should ask her out by now_," _Duskmon commented, allowing a ghostly blade to go through a nearby candle_. _It passed straight through the object, leaving the candle unaffected_.

Just ignore him, _Kouichi told himself. He sat down in the chair before his desk, elbows rested on the counter and hands clutching the sides of his head_. _Dark eyes focused on the table space in front of him_. What will you tell Kako? _How_ will you tell Kako?

_Duskmon smirked as he caught up on Kouichi's thoughts_. _Again he repeated_, "_Ask her out. Kill a few birds with one stone_." _His smugness intensified when Kouichi groaned_. So easy to pressure him into these things...

"_I_ don't _need your help!_" _The words slipped out of Kouichi's mouth of their own accord. He soon matched the mood when he stood up_, _clenching his fists_. "_I'll do it my way, got it?_" _the boy spat, glaring daggers and wiping the smirk off the digimon's face_.

Suit yourself, _Duskmon thought to himself_. _The smirk had turned into a frown_. _As Duskmon slunk back into the shadows, he smiled inwardly_. _A fish like that always took the bait_.

-END FLASHBACK-

Last night's events kept replaying themselves in Kouichi's head. Eventually he realized Duskmon had been right. The only way to sort things was to ask Kako out.

_Of course, it won't be a _date _kind of date_, he reassured himself, gazing at the cement pavement as he walked in step with Kako.

The sigh that escaped him didn't go unnoticed by Kako. Curiosity getting the better of her, she turned in his direction and cocked her head to the side. "You seem to be thinking hard."

He was taken aback by the sudden choice of a conversation. "Uh...?" was all he could say.

"You seem to be thinking hard," Kako repeated. "Something on your mind?"

"Uhh..."

Out of sheer annoyance, Kako threw her hands up in the air. "What is with you, Kouichi? You're spacing out today!" she yelled, stopping in front of him. Their eyes locked briefly as she told him in a quiet voice, "Don't tell me to smile if you're going to space out when I do." She was shaking with anger as she turned around and was about to walk off.

"N-no, wait," Kouichi blurted, reaching out to grab her shoulder. "I didn't mean it like that." Seeing he got her attention, Kouichi continued to explain, "I was just thinking...about...things from yesterday. It's been pretty hectic, I guess. B-but...at the moment...I wanted to ask you something..." He swallowed, awaiting her okay.

The girl rose an eyebrow. "Yeah?" She prompted him to continue with an absentminded gesture of her hand.

Taking several deep breaths slowly, Kouichi asked, "D-do you...want to go out after school?" He paused for a split second, recognizing the look on her face. "N-not like a _date_, you know, but just go out to...to sort things out!" he said quickly, looking at her with panicking eyes.

There was an incredulous look on Kako's face. "That's it?" she asked bluntly.

"Yeah..."

Kako burst out laughing. "Sure, why not?" she cackled, unable to stop. Once more, she began walking, leaving Kouichi behind, gazing wide-eyed at her.

_Do I sound that stupid?_ the boy wondered, shaking his head glumly. "...Duskmon must be laughing at me too." _I hate it when he's right_.

-------------------------------------

"Kouichi, you're ready to be sent back to Ogata's class!" Rai announced that day, punching her right fist into the air.

Kouichi, who was absorbed in one of his books, completely ignored his teacher.

Noticing this, Ms. Kawai dropped her hand to her side. _Let's try this again_, she thought, eyes narrowing on the ignorant pupil. Smirking, she slammed her hands down on the textbook Kouichi was looking at, startling him and causing him to look up, mouth open in protest. "GO BACK TO OGATA'S CLASS," she yelled.

A scowl appeared on his face. Crossing his legs on the chair, and then his arms, Kouichi said one word: "NO." After that, the words that followed were more hesitant and carried his worry. "Y-you can't make me!" Kouichi shouted childishly.

"You wanna bet?" she returned, drawing back up to her full height and glaring down at him. As she placed her hands on her hips, Ms. Kawai breathed, "God, this is ridiculous," and with a sigh, she gazed up at the ceiling. "You win," she muttered.

The boy smirked and held his ground. _No duh_.

The smirk faltered when Rai turned around and began, "So..." The note hung on edge, irking Kouichi beyond belief. Blood pounded in his ears while Ms. Kawai remained silent. It was impossible to anticipate a hint of what she was saying. "Then, we'll send you back tomorrow!" Rai finally announced, laughing triumphantly.

Uncrossing her arms and legs, Kouichi slumped forward until his chin rested on the table. _Corrupt teachers that are used to getting their way. I hate them_, he thought with a heavy sigh. But Ogata was the least of his troubles now. More important things were about. He would have to face Ogata sooner or later anyway, he realized, and so he accepted it.

Ms. Kawai took a seat in a nearby chair and regarded Kouichi with a strange look on her face. It was a while before she spoke, and when she decided to, she was slow about it, carefully choosing her words. Kouichi wouldn't be set off she knew, but it was better to be cautious than not.

"You...and Kako aren't exactly together yet, huh?" she asked. Her head was slowly tilting to the side, as if Kouichi had grown a head out of his neck.

He was growing uncomfortable. She could tell just by the way he immediately sat up. In a low voice, Kouichi murmured, "We're...going to sort things out today after school." He felt obliged to tell her more, but his better judgment advised against it.

Clapping with delight, Ms. Kawai exclaimed, "How cute! Hideki should videotape you two!"

"NO WAY!"

"Oh, come off it. You know, you're being too stiff about this," she commented, leaning back in her chair once more. "You can't play a lawyer in love. Lawyers deal with cases, not love. Love isn't a case. That just isn't what it is."

Miserably, Kouichi sank back in his seat. _I know_...

She seemed to guess what he was thinking. "You know that, sure, but you aren't showing that you do, Kouichi. As far as Kako is concerned, she thinks you think you two are just really good friends. No, that doesn't mean you have to declare your love and propose or something stupid," Ms. Kawai added quickly. Kouichi's mouth shut and she continued, "Right now, Kako's just a bit insecure. She doesn't even know about Duskmon killing Piximon. All she knows is Kouji's a murderer. She knows you're Kouji's brother. The rest of us are coping with Piximon's death and trying to move on. But Kako isn't like that. Kako holds onto death. She can't let it go. It took her forever to get over her mother..."

Furiously, Kouichi rose to his feet. "You can't say that! She had every right, and she still does! It would be nice if she wasn't...so...insecure about it, but that's who she is. It's not like she can change for you!" he snapped.

Taken aback, Rai blinked a few times. _Wow, Mr. Misinterpreter_, she thought, hiding a smile as he continued. It was almost amusing to hear him argue for Kako. His words barely made it to her ears, but the last sentence did.

"-and as far as I know, you're not much of a role model yourself!" shouted Kouichi, storming out of the library.

Rai burst out into laughter in Kouichi's absence. Seconds later, it subsided into chokes and chuckles. _Good digimon_, she thought, wiping her eyes as a chuckle escaped her, _he knows how to get to people. Maybe he really does know how to actually love...he just doesn't show it around her_. A giggle bubbled to the surface. _Hideki and I apparently have a job after school_.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi sat down on the bench. His hands were beside him, clutching the wooden edge of the seat. The sun was beating down on his back, and a sharp wind blew directly in his face. Ignoring the sting of his eyes, Kouichi continued to wait for the bell.

_Five minutes_..._no, wait_..._four minutes and forty-five seconds_. _Now eighteen_. _Hey, it's a butterfly_. _No, that's a moth_..._? No, it's a butterfly_. _Three minutes, twenty-two_. _Twenty_. _I don't want to wait anymore. This is annoying. Hurry up and ring!_

As if on cue, the bell rang and dozens of students poured out of the school. Kouichi stayed in his seat, warily watching the passerby for any sign of Kako. He finally spotted her laughing with Izumi, Takuya and Kouji. Junpei was a few feet behind the four, and they were all straight in front of Kouichi.

Anytime, he could have gotten up and stolen Kako away. Anytime, he could have waved. The entire time, Kako's eyes were glued onto him, sparkling like none other. He couldn't move. Rai's words hit him like a soccer ball to the stomach. 'You can't play a lawyer in love,' she had told him. And he began to wonder, _Am I really playing a lawyer?_

He sat there, spacing out with his eyes glued onto Kako. Even with that fact, he didn't see her approaching and waving a hand in front of his face. "Kouichi...are you okay?" Kako asked, gazing down at him. She was genuinely concerned.

_I'm playing a lawyer...?_ Kouichi didn't even know the meaning of the word 'lawyer' anymore. Everything seemed a hazy blur. The heat was getting to him, and the icy wind just gave him a headache. It was all one big mess.

He had put together the puzzle incorrectly. There was a false piece. That was his relationship with Kako. For so long, he thought that part of the puzzle was fine. It wasn't. The piece had gone in too easily.

He finally stood up and shut his eyes. "Let's go," Kouichi whispered and opened his eyes to find Kako looking up at him.

There was something about the heat of the day that made him wonder if everything would go as he wanted. He should have known.

-------------------------------------

"We haven't talked the entire time," Kako finally said as they walked down the road.

Their first stop had been Kouichi's house to drop off his backpack, and then Kako's house to drop off hers. Hideki hadn't been home, but Kako was hardly worried. What worried her more than anything was the fact that they had been walking in silence. Even in her more moody of moods, whether it was good or bad, Kouichi always had something to say. Now, he looked more troubled than calm.

When he turned to her, Kouichi forced a smile. No matter how forced it was, it felt like a conditioned reaction. Part of him wondered if he had hurt her all this time. Quietly, he told her, "I know. I'm sorry."

_Not again_, Kako thought disgustedly. _First Kouji, now him. Twins are just weird_.

Kouichi continued, unaware that Kako rolled her eyes, "I know you think I'm apologizing for nothing, but I...I really am sorry. Kako, this entire time before this...did you really think I just considered us really close friends?"

And it hit her. She had been preoccupied with Piximon's death and other matters and being with Kouichi just seemed normal compared to that. Guilty, she looked away and returned, "No. I...took you for granted, I guess." She stood still and snuck a peek, praying he wasn't upset.

He was far from upset. Letting out a relieved sigh and halting on the spot, Kouichi hung his head and slowly began to laugh. Eventually, he threw his head back, laughing loudly and throwing his troubles away. It was almost refreshing. When his laughter slowly faded, he caught the look on Kako's face.

"Equal ignorance," he told her, chuckling one last time before he sighed again. "We were equally ignorant of our relationship. It was more of a normal routine to us than something important. I guess..." He scratched his head and grinned as he presented his analogy, "we're like drugs! Can't get enough of each other!"

While he burst out laughing again, Kako twitched. "That was _lame_, Kouichi!" she retorted, playfully hitting his arm. Even then she couldn't help but smile as he continued to laugh and cry at the pain of his arm. In the back of her mind, she began to wonder, _Was this what Duskmon was talking about? He _could_ be a little more specific_. _Not like it would kill him_. Yet her discontent was not shown. Instead, curiosity replaced it. "So what are we now?" inquired Kako, standing on her tiptoes and covering his mouth with a hand.

Kouichi brushed it away and stopped laughing. For a while, he remained silent and contemplated the question. He finally admitted, "Good question. I have no answer. What do you _want_ us to be?" While he looked at her, Kouichi tapped his head with one finger while the other hand rested in his pocket, seemingly attempting to get his brain working again.

Noticing this, the girl stared at him with an eyebrow raised. "Hopping digimon," Kako replied sarcastically.

Grinning, Kouichi pretended to wince. "Ooh, all hopping digimon are insulted!" he told her, a mock frown on his face.

Going along with the act, Kako clasped her hands together and exclaimed, "I'm so sorry to all the bunnies out there! Not to mention the kangaroos! And all other hopping animals!"

"You're cruel," Kouichi suddenly commented, completely seriously.

Kako just laughed. "Thank you."

"Want to head to the bookstore?"

"Sure...I was thinking about reading something anyway. And if Rai's there with Hideki like the note said, I can ask her about something. Say, Kouichi?" Kako suddenly asked as they changed their course to .

"Hm?"

"Never mind. But Kouichi?"

Kouichi stopped walking and regarded Kako almost condescendingly. Exasperated, he told her pointedly, "You just said never mind!"

"Yes, but this question is different!" Kako insisted, jumping up and down.

He continued walking and waved a dismissive hand in her direction. "What is it?" the boy inquired.

Kako ran to catch up to him and asked, "Really, what are we?"

"Uh...a couple?"

"...oh, okay."

"That is, if you want to be."

"You realize how lame that sounds."

"This is awkward. Sue me if you have a problem with it."

She burst into laughter and proclaimed, "I'm suing you!"

"I WAS KIDDING!" Kouichi growled as they entered the bookstore. He waved to Mr. Saito and bowed respectfully. "Mr. Saito," he addressed the man, careful not to let his tongue slip around Kako.

Kako waved as well before dashing off to a random bookshelf. Instead of following her, Kouichi stood rooted to the same spot for several minutes before he began to walk up to the desk Mr. Saito sat behind. Someone reached it before him, and the person was all too familiar.

"Kanaye...?" Kouichi murmured in disbelief. He staggered back several steps and shook his head to clear it.

Kanaye stood there in front of him, glaring coldly. "If you have a problem, Kimura," he said coolly, "I suggest you bother me later. I don't have time for this."

Troubled, Kouichi nodded. "Yeah, but since when do you come here to...buy books? Or are they on world domination?" he asked jokingly.

Looking back at his books, Kanaye shook his head. Instead, he cleared his throat and muttered, sounding almost embarrassed, "Actually...they're tips on gardening."

"You garden?" Kouichi asked, raising an eyebrow. _Actually, he does seem the type_, he realized.

"Yes, do you have a problem with it?" Irritably, Kanaye turned back to Mr. Saito. "How much?"

Kouichi tried not to gawk as Kanaye actually bought the books. It was an almost strange sight. The boy whom he had thought cold and unfeeling actually came to the _Saito_ bookstore of all bookstores in town. To top it all off, he bought books on gardening tips.

_I wonder what he grows_, Kouichi thought, wandering off to find some books for himself. He ran into Kako halfway to the shelf he had aimed for and accidentally knocked the book out of her hand. "Sorry," he quickly murmured, picking up the book and stopping at the title. _World Domination for Dummies...? You have to be kidding me_, Kouichi thought, twitching slightly.

Kako snatched the book from his hands. "Don't say a _word_," she growled, running to the counter and stopping when she saw Kanaye. Suddenly she yelled, "What's he doing here?"

"Did you two switch tastes?" Kouichi inquired, snatching the book from Kako. It wasn't the regular 'Dummy' book, but instead some book about the misadventures of a man who wished to take over the world. _Who writes these things?_ Kouichi tossed the book back to Kako.

Mr. Saito just smiled and handed Kanaye's books to the said boy. He finally confessed, "But the book is actually very interesting, despite the title." Still smiling, he took the book from Kako and scanned it.

An overwhelming feeling overran Kouichi. _What does it feel like to see your own daughter and not be able to let her know you're her father? I'd feel pretty lousy_, he thought, sulking on the spot.

"Kimura."

Kouichi looked at Kanaye blankly as the boy continued, "Does her brother still hate me?" He pointed in Kako's direction as he said this.

He just shrugged. Turning his gaze to the ceiling, Kouichi rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't know. Probably. Why?" Kouichi inquired with great curiosity.

Without talking, Kanaye pointed to the door, where Hideki and Ms. Kawai stood, laughing.

_She said something about Hideki taping me!_ Alarmed, Kouichi edged behind Kanaye, hoping that was enough to keep him out of his insane teacher's view.

"Hey, it's Kouichi," Hideki suddenly exclaimed. Quickly, he cleared his throat and corrected himself, "Er...that is...twerp one. And twerp three is here, too..." Less enthusiastic as he said this, he looked in Kanaye's direction, glaring murderously.

Rolling her eyes, Rai gazed at Kouichi. Almost expectantly, she tapped her foot. When nothing was said, she asked aloud, "Well...?"

Confused, Kouichi repeated, "Well?" _Am I supposed to tell her something?_

She let out an exasperated sigh and rolled her eyes. Throwing her hands in the air, Rai yelled, "Yes! Now spill!" Again, her hands dropped and she waited for an answer.

The boy jumped away from Kanaye and glared at his teacher. "I'm not telling you anything! You're a lousy teacher!" Kouichi blurted, pointing an accusing finger.

"Oy, watch where you point that thing!" Hideki spat, walking forward and glaring down at the boy.

Kouichi glared back, and Kako ran to Ms. Kawai, book clutched to her chest. "Pst, Rai!" Kako whispered, motioning for the young lady to lean down. "I need to ask you something," Kako told her aloud before whispering into Rai's ear.

Hideki and Kouichi were too preoccupied with their glaring contest, but Kanaye was able to observe as Rai's face turned from pale to a dark crimson. Angrily, she pulled herself up straight and marched straight towards Mr. Saito. At this point, Hideki and Kouichi stopped, feeling the aura in the air.

Wide-eyed, Hideki turned to Kako and hissed, "What did you tell her?" He was shaking almost visibly, trying to mask it by rolling back his shoulders and walking over to Rai in hopes of calming her down.

"You. Filthy. _Liar_," Rai spat, slamming her hands down on the counter. Mr. Saito remained calm, holding up a hand to silence Hideki when he tried to interrupt. Angrily, Rai continued to rant, "You think just because you're a dead man, you have every right to give your damned diary to your daughter and allow her to read the contents? What, did you also say, 'Oh, yes, and Hideki and Kako are my children. I married Harumi. I'm Seraphimon's shadow. I know the future. I know everything. I even know the outcome!' Well guess what?" She paused briefly to inhale. "You _don't_ know everything! You don't know how this will turn out, and I'll _prove_ it to you! You're a damn idiot, Marise! I'm _not_ letting your stupid predictions come true!" she screamed before whirling around and storming out.

Clenching his hands into fists, Hideki swore aloud and sank down in the chair by the counter. "Great. Kako, what did you-oh...holy..." Again, Hideki swore, noticing the tears that crept down his sister's face. Beside her, Kouichi stood, eyes shut. There was a pained expression on his face that soon transferred to Hideki. Nervously, he rose to his feet and walked over to his sister. "K-Kako...?" he called out, forcing a smile.

Gaze set hard on the carpeted floor in front of her, Kako clenched her fists. She had dropped the book in her hands long ago. "You...I _hate_ you..." she whispered, gazing up slowly at her brother.

There was a sound of protest beside her. Kouichi opened his eyes and gazed desperately at Kako. "Kako, please," whispered the boy, reaching out to place a hand on her shoulder.

Angrily, Kako pushed it away. "And _you _knew too! That's why you gave me the stupid diary, isn't it? I hate you! I hate you all!" she screamed, pushing Kouichi away as she ran out the door.

Again, Hideki cursed. All this time, no one cared that Kanaye had disappeared long ago at the first sign of this bubbling anger of Rai's. Instead, all eyes were on Marise as he calmly walked from behind the counter and picked up the book Kako had dropped. He handed it to Hideki. "See to it that she gets this," he murmured quietly.

"She'll hate you for a long time, you know," Hideki told him, taking the book.

"I know. Kouichi..."

Guiltily, Kouichi looked up, trying to make eye contact but failing miserably. "Y-yes...?" he asked in a quavering voice.

"Would you see to it that she gets home safely?"

In that same voice, Kouichi repeated affirmatively, "Y-yes..." Without another word, he ran out, knowing very well that when he got home, he would lie down on his bed with a bowl of soup and pray his headache went away.

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A/N-

Yes. Yes, I know it took forever, but this chapter was important (I actually plotted it out) and I wanted it to be done properly. I am forever sorry. It pains me to say this, but I won't be updating or writing all week (hopefully) due to an essay, a thesis, a TKD pre-test I must work hard for, and other school work. But I really have to thank you all, because you reviews came right on time. If you don't get my meaning, just when I felt down, my inbox was flooded with reviews. To me, flooded is getting over three e-mails. XP But I enjoyed reading them all, and I hope you'll like the next chapter. It's more informational (if the plan works). I would have had this up earlier, but my sister came home from college and slept like crazy, so because I use the computer in her room to type...and then yesterday when I tried to update, I couldn't upload the document. KH2 is tomorrow, isn't it? .:depressed sigh:.

THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS! THEY MADE ME FEEL BETTER-

**GemmaniGirl, Winter's Light, The Light's Refrain, Snowy Leopardess**

Review or PM or Flame, please!


	30. From One To Another

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

Dedication: To everyone who waited patiently for this chapter, especially **GemmaniGirl**.

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From One To Another

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Kako threw herself on her bed, ignoring the silent sobs that racked through her body. Dust could be spotted in the few spears of light that managed to flow through the shut blinds. Clothes lay on the floor, mingling with stuffed animals, papers, and other items. But it didn't matter. Immediately her hands grabbed for her pillow and she tightly pressed her face against it. Silence. She wanted silence.

The sobs ceased to exist as her fingers brushed against a rectangular item beneath her pillow. _The diary_, Kako realized, sitting up. _He's my dad...that's his diary_. The flow was slow and sticky but everything began to connect. The thought that she had known him the entire time, but only as another shopkeeper who was a friend of Hideki suddenly hit Kako full force. She hated him, and she didn't know a thing about him.

She wanted to know. She wanted to understand.

"I guess," Kako whispered to herself, sitting up and clutching the pillow to her stomach. One hand left the pillow and reached for the diary. "I guess I should start here."

Dropping the pillow and turning around so her back was to the wall, Kako squeezed her eyes shut. The covers were pulled above her knees. And on her lap lay the diary. Finally, she opened her eyes and the book at the same time.

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'_Some things have come to my attention_. _It is only fair that as my daughter, Kako doesn't remain ignorant of at least our family situation_. _As her father_..._although at this time, she should be hating me_..._I have decided that if she ever finds out, she shall read this, and all will be explained_.'

'_Note to self_: _Make sure this function is only enabled if she finds out_.'

'The Family Situation:

'_Harumi Aizawa, my wife and more_..._there was a moment where she hated me with a passion_. _She claimed_, "You're weak and hopeless. You realize you'll never be able to live this through? Why would I like you? You're hopeless, Saito, and besides, I wouldn't love you unless the world depended on it." _I wonder if it is a trait of all women to declare that to the men they love_. _Harumi was more than anything to me_. _A source of happiness, the very embodiment of all I loved_..._She was my comfort_, _she was my cure_. _Being sickly from a young age_, _I began to wonder if that was why she hated me_. _I didn't love her for being Ophanimon's shadow_. _I could have cared less_. _If she was just another person, I would have loved her_. _I love her_...

'_Perhaps I should censor this_.'

'_Taishi Aizawa was a tough father-in-law_. "You'll ruin it for the children," _he told me_. "You'll hurt them by going through with this marriage." _I suppose we did_. _Perhaps that's why Cherubimon went crazy?_ _Harumi would say that it was because Cherubimon went crazy that Taishi did_. _She always did seem to-that is, well, because this is about Taishi_..._like father, like daughter_. _Taishi hated me, precisely because I was Seraphimon's shadow_. _I have to admit, I wish I was as stubborn as him sometimes_. _So easily moved by a puppy face_..._but I return those with one of my own_.'

'_Midori Aizawa, now known as _"Mrs. Orimoto," _or Izumi's mother_, _is Harumi's sister_. _Younger I believe_. _If I get this fact wrong, Harumi will kill me_. _Ten months of difference, so_..._ah, yes, anyway, I was write, so Harumi cannot kill me_. _She fully supported my intentions_. "Harumi needs a boyfriend. Please, take her and leave," _she told me when I attempted to sneak into the house through the front door_. _Why the front door?_ _Everyone uses windows_. _Sneaking through windows is expected_. _I'll never forget her help_. _More than ever now, I wish I could have left you and Hideki with her, Kako_. _You will never know all the stories she could have told you had Harumi made that decision_. _An oath is an oath, no matter the situation_. _Midori agreed to forget all these happenings_. _They are on the surface, ready to be spilled, but so is the promise she made to me_. _Forgive me_. _Perhaps when this over_.'

'_Those would be the most important relatives_. _Harumi's mother, I never met_. _My parents, somewhat rich, vanished without a trace, leaving me with a caretaker at the age of two_. _Did I love them?_ _Yes, I suppose I did_. _They were kind to me, it was only right_. _However, Youko was the one who took care of me the most_. _Everything I amounted to came from her_. _You would be surprised_..._the very reason I know all of this_...

'_That is a story for another day_.'

'_Around the end of our college years and the entrance of our careers, I stumbled upon Harumi in the park_. _Her reaction was immediate_. _She insulted me straight out and claimed I was sick and weakly_. _I would never amount to anything_. _Yet around her, there was an unmistakable aura_. _I found her rather intriguing_. _I began to _accidentally_ bump into her more often_. _She continued to insult me_.

'_I met Taishi when I came over to Harumi's house for a tutoring session_. _No, I wasn't being tutored_. _It seems the weak mathematic skills Hideki has comes from her and not me_. _I wonder if they're psychics sometimes, because they both knew of my intentions from the start_. _Taishi began to hate me_, _but my obvious charm worked on Harumi_. _I am of the male species_. _Of course I'm egotistical_. _And so, Taishi hated me all the more_.

'_We were married a year before Hideki was born with the support of Youko and Midori_. _Taishi threatened to disown Harumi at the news of Hideki's appearance_. _But as I said before, like father, like daughter_. _The two were truly stubborn in making their decisions_. _Harumi won out_. _It was more that Hideki won out_. _He was an angel when he was born_. _I can't say much now_.

'_It was as you came into the picture that we realized what awaited us_. _The years between the birth of Hideki and you_, _I began doing extensive research on the Digital World and intertwining my predictions into silly little stories_. _Because of this, though, Taishi's old hatred of our marriage returned, far more intense than before_. _There was reason behind this_. _You were born Kako, and a month later, I left_. _It wasn't because of Harumi or anyone else_. _It was simply because had I continued to live with you_, _you would have known me, I would have died_, _and the knowledge of two parents dying is worse than one_.

'_But we are all meant to die_. _Harumi knew this and quickly remarried, pretending as if Gen Sakai was your actual father_. _It was rather amusing to torture him by coming over_. _I don't think you remember that, Kako_. _Nevertheless, time came and went, and Harumi completely cut her connections with me, much to Taishi and Gen's approval_. _She feared I would accidentally reveal this secret_. _Hideki was far too influenced by me as it was_. _So, not knowing who to send to the Digital World_, _she sent as many children as possible_. _She knew very well I knew exactly who would be going, but because of our promise to never meet_, _she refused to ask_.

'_At the same time, Hideki, my former heir as Seraphimon's shadow_, _was also caught in the crossfire_. _So he was demoted to Neemon and I believe it was Ryuusei's grandfather who finally died_. _Why this switch was made_, _I have no knowledge of_. _Harumi died, Gen moved_, _in all technicalities, I died_, _but because Seraphimon didn't have an experienced shadow_, _he was stuck in a sort of Limbo_. _I remained alive because of this_, _balance was thrown off_, _and Lucemon carefully plotted his next attack_.'

'Piximon's Role:

'_On a trip to Hawaii before your birth, I stumbled into the forest as you did and discovered an egg on a bush a few feet away from the tree_. _I took it and_, _with further research, discovered it was a guardian of the Hawaiian gate_. _So when it hatched_, _the digi-egg would theoretically be able to control the gate between the Real and Digital World_. _Before Duskmon _(_Kouji couldn't harm Piximon anymore than knocking him out_) _further damaged Piximon_, _Piximon was supposed to secure the gate for emergency entry_. _I had assumed by them that Lucemon would have opened his artificial gate_, _but Takuya interfered and Piximon left us too quickly_.

'_Piximon also swore to me that he would make sure that all plans went accordingly when it came to you_. _Originally, you were supposed to learn everything from the default diary_, _not this special section_. _Piximon was also to brief you on certain points not emphasized in this diary_. _You were never supposed to know I was your father_. _You were also supposed to discover the other fact that will be revised in an upcoming section_. _Overall, Piximon was your guardian angel in a way_. _If ever a time came when you were in trouble alone_, _he would protect you_.

'_As your father, I'm extremely discomforted at his disappearance, I'll have you know_. _Kouichi can't be there _all _the time for you _(_unfortunately_).'

'The Role Of Chaos:

'_After reading through all my diary entries from years ago, you wonder what Chaos has anything to do with this_. _Chaos is key to the creation of worlds_. _It exists to balance everything_. _Without Chaos_, _a world will cease to exist_. _You know the core of the Digital World holds a great amount of Chaos_. _This Chaos_, _manipulated by Lucemon in the past_, _has a mind of it's own_. _Lucemon was able to take control of it to open a gate to the real world during the occupation of the Digi-destined_. _If he had not been stopped, he would have eventually lost control, and Chaos would have distorted the same balance that it protected_.

'_Our own world holds little Chaos in the core_. _There is just enough for us to exist_, _but too little to stop this _'_shadow system_'_ established by Chaos of the Digital World_. _We are overpowered by the mass amount, and so we are stuck in this cycle_. _There are many possibilities of breaking free of it_. _It all amounts to the same thing_:_ the destruction of the Digital World_.'

'An Explanation For Kouichi:

'_The poor boy is speechless_. _He really ought to speak up_. _Kouichi plays an important part in all of this_. _I don't think he even knows_. _Whatever happens is dependent on his choices_. _You two are cute together, and you may be a couple, but keep your eyes open, Kako_. _Your mother would tell you boys aren't to be trusted_. _Of course, she ended up marrying me, but that's another story_. _Not all are as innocent as they seem_. _You will understand this better in the end_. _For now, whatever happens, do not be angry with Kouichi_. _Or his brother for that matter_.'

'Hideki's Entry:

'_Since Dad's letting me write at the moment, Kako, I'm telling you, if you laugh at me because I'm Neemon, your diary is going public_. _So I guess you know the truth now_. _Rai isn't meant to die_. _I'm the lucky guy who gets to_. _Doesn't matter_. _You will _not_ do anything about it, because if you do, and I'm still alive in the end of this all_, _your diary is doomed_. _If you're going to go out with Twerp one, make sure he doesn't hurt you_. _Give idiots a good kick in the shin_. _Do _not_ interfere in my life_. _Why can I interfere in yours?_ _Stupid question, Kako_. _I'm your older brother_. _If you're mad at Dad_, _you're pretty stupid_. _It's not _his_ fault this happened_. _Gramps got annoyed_. _Blame him_. _And I don't wanna catch you and Twerp one doing something stupid like fighting over_..._something_.

'_I'm not going to tell you anything else_. _I can't really tell you anything else anyway_. _We're all really sticking our necks out there to help you, and if you don't respect this, don't expect any help anymore_. _I'm sick of hearing_, "If Mom were here-" _Mom isn't here at the moment_. _Mom can't do anything for us right now_. _If you want to play Mom_, _don't say what she would do, _do _it_.

'_Because Dad thinks you'll go through with this if I say it, just don't get angry with Twerp one or two_. _They're boys_. _They're idiots_. _They're young_. _They're stupid, too_. _I'm actually starting to like this job!_ _No, wait-that would mean that when I was their age I was all of that_. _I'll have you know, that isn't true_.

'_Whatever you choose to do_, _make sure you're positive of your choice_. _Indecision isn't bad, but it can lead you to making the wrong choice_, _even if it was a good choice_. _Trust in your friends and help them pull through_. _They can't do this alone, Kako_.'

'The Good, The Bad, The Mon:

'_I will make this short_. _This is by far the most important advice I can give you, Kako_. _Be careful in who you place trust in and who you choose as your enemy_. _For you see, darkness is not always bad and light not always good_. _Pay close attention: There are things you can only see in the dark while light may blind_. _Whatever you make of either_, _make sure to make it count_. _Find this _'_thing,_'_ because it will be your friend_._ Furthermore you will find that the most unlikely people will come to your aid and you will come to theirs_.'

'What The Future Holds:

'_You would be surprised _(_or perhaps not_) _to know that after this, I don't know a single second of what will happen_. _There are so many things involved in the outcome, that there are literally thousands of possibilities_. _Even the action of the most insignificant counts_. _Your future is definite, made by your hands_. _Do not be hesitant_. _Start with mending relations, and you will go farther than you ever imagined_. _However, what I guess is that you'll find what I have to say at the moment rather strange and frightening_. _All the more reason not to say it_.'

'The Egg:

'_Another one of Piximon's jobs was to make sure you retrieved the egg from Hawaii_. _It's role is far more important than all of ours combined_. _I can tell you it is not Piximon's egg_. _Make sure you keep it out of the wrong hands_. _It holds incredible power_. _Think of it as your little secret you share with Kouichi_. _Something to start with_. _Ah, you two will be wonderful!_ _I'm sure Hideki will be, too_. _And Rai once she stops being angry_. _No one else may know about the egg_. _In truth, Hideki really shouldn't see it either_. _I'm afraid he'll accidentally cook it for dinner_.'

'Current Status:

'_All spirits but Lobomon have been discovered, belonging in the order of Fire, Wind, Ice, Thunder, Water, Earth, Wood, Steel, and Darkness to Takuya, Izumi, Tomoki, Junpei, Naoko, Shinya, Ritsuo, Fujitaka, and Kouichi_. _Neemon, Bokomon and Sorcermon and their shadows Hideki, Ichiro and Ryuusei have been found_. _Two of the three angels_, _Ophanimon and Cherubimon_, _Rai and Taishi, and the current servants of Lucemon, Devimon and LadyDevimon, Kanaye and Ai, have been revealed_. _Seraphimon's shadow remains unknown_. _D-Tectors of the former Digi-destined have been passed to all but Kouji_. _Lucemon remains unknown_.'

'_Kako, know that I did not go into great detail in any of this_. _There is much, much more to know_. _I have summarized everything for you in these few pages_. _Do not expect to find anything else in the rest of the diary_. _Everything else_, _you must discover yourself_.'

'_In your journey, I wish you luck_.'

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"Kako, I'm home," Hideki called out, tossing the keys carelessly onto the floor and shutting the door gently behind him. No one answered him.

Curiously he ventured further into the house, carefully pushing the door to Kako's room open. Fast asleep on the bed lay Kako, the diary between her arms. Hideki smiled slightly as he walked up to the bed and picked up the diary. "Stupid," he muttered, pulling the covers over his sister and exiting the room.

It occurred to him that she would never forgive them. He highly doubted she would. Hideki made his way to his own room and placed the diary on his table. Quietly muttering to himself, he wondered aloud, "Is Rai still annoyed at me? She and Kako have the worst tempers ever...I'm amazed they aren't related."

He chuckled a little at this before gazing at the picture frame on his desk. Kako, his father, his mother and himself, together in only this picture. In a way, it was a laughable matter. The month after Kako's birth, the only time his father had been home was for that picture. Every other day, from early morning to late night, Marise was busy.

"You'd be amazed how much everything's changed, Mom," Hideki whispered, taking the picture into his hand and placing it face down on the table. "I guess we'll have to start all over."

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Kouichi walked into the room silently, ignoring the strange looks he received. Kouji was busy figuring out what he needed and what he didn't need at his locker, and Izumi and Takuya were talking about Shinya by Takuya's locker. The last thing Kouichi wanted to do was go into the room he had hated from the first moment he had set foot into it. The only thing he was grateful for was that Ogata hadn't arrived yet.

He took his seat and pulled out a book. Hideki had a point when he was talking about Marise's books. Never once had Kouichi come across a book as deep and draining as Marise's. Many times in the year, he had put off reading it for that reason. He was so easily taken into the character. In a way, it made Kouichi wonder if it was based off of something real.

Kouji walked in just as Kouichi opened his book. "You should really talk to Rai about this," the younger twin commented, dropping his backpack by his desk and the books on his desk. Noticing the unusual silence that emanated from his brother on the matter, Kouji frowned. One hand supported him as he leaned against the desk and said, "Don't tell me you're still upset about yesterday..."

There was a struggle to get out the words. With some difficulty, Kouichi managed, "I'm not...upset." He made sure not to meet Kouji's gaze. _At least Kako isn't here yet_, he told himself in an attempt to show the positive aspects of his situation. A sigh escaped him and he looked out the window that he found he missed greatly. _I guess I shouldn't have told Kouji_. _He'll rub this into my face_.

"Kouichi, you should just talk to her," Kouji told him, taking his seat.

"You make it sound so easy."

Laughing, the younger boy insisted, "It really could be." He leaned back in his seat and awaited Kouichi's answer.

Slamming his hand down on the desk, Kouichi snapped, "It isn't!" He locked eyes with his twin, who was surprisingly calm. Kouichi felt himself burning. "That's _two_ marks against me, Kouji. First, Duskmon killing Piximon, and now this. I could have told her the truth. I could have gone up to her and instead of giving her the diary, told her, 'Hey, Kako, you know Mr. Saito? He's your dad!' It doesn't matter! She would still hate me!" he hissed in a low voice so no one else could hear. The will to scream was suppressed by the want to be rid of the guilt inside of him.

"Stop drowning in self-pity," Kouji spat. He was about to continue when the door was shoved open, allowing the last few students to scramble in before the bell rang and Mr. Ogata entered the room.

Calmly walking to the front, Mr. Ogata said in a loud voice, "Settle down class. Get your pencil out for the quiz."

Kouichi shot his brother a confused look. Shaking his head, Kouji muttered, "Bad time for you. We have a quiz on our reading. Secrets of Yuto."

"Good thing Marise had me read that ages ago," Kouichi breathed out, sighing as he slumped over his desk.

A sharp voice called out, "Kimura!"

Immediately, Kouichi sat up. _Oh no...wait, it's just Ogata,_ he told himself, slouching back in his seat a little. He locked gazes with his teacher for a while before the man continued, "I take it you didn't know about the reading?"

_Might as well lead him on_. "Nope," Kouichi confessed. "Didn't know anything about the reading or the book." _The remainder of the year just might be fun_.

"Too bad. You'll be taking the quiz too."

_And I'll ace it and laugh at you endlessly_. Kouichi sat up in his seat, eyes focused in a piercing glare after taking out a pencil. He would make sure he got the last laugh. The papers were passed out and Kouichi began to twitch in anticipation. He almost turned around but remembered Kako hadn't come. Sighing, Kouichi felt himself fall as he stared blankly at the paper. Just as his pencil touched the paper to answer the first question, the door burst open and Kako stumbled in, bright red.

"Ms. Sakai...nice of you to join us. Take your seat," Mr. Ogata commanded, motioning in the direction of her seat behind Kouichi.

Trembling, Kako quickly strode to her seat and sat down automatically, taking the paper from Mr. Ogata and a pencil from her backpack.

Kouichi didn't have to turn around to guess she was having a nervous breakdown. He could guess several reasons why, but wasn't sure if any of them were correct. Instead, he did his very best to drown out the shaky breaths that came from behind him and the mutterings from Kanaye who had engaged in a rather serious discussion with Mr. Ogata.

It only took him a few minutes to complete the quiz. He kept an innocent face as Ogata took his paper, scanning the answers with a furious look on his own face. _Another job well done, Kouichi. Now figure out how to patch things up with Kako and not screw up again_, he told himself, gazing out the window.

Thirty minutes later, the last quiz was passed in with a loud groan. Mr. Ogata had a dissatisfied look on his face as he scanned through the paper. Shaking his head, he told the class, "I'm severely disappointed that not _one_ of you who actually read the book got a passing grade. There was only _one_ 'A' in this class and...Kimura, don't give me that look!"

Shutting his eyes and leaning back in his chair, Kouichi just shook his head and yawned. "Wake me up when he's got something to teach," he muttered so Kouji could hear.

Behind Kouichi there was a stifled sob. Wide-eyed, Kouichi sat up and turned around, half-worried, half-scared. Kako's hair hid her expression as she bowed her head, but it didn't take a genius to tell she was crying. "Kako-" Kouichi started, forcing himself to keep his hands by his side.

No words were exchanged as the entire class watched Kako run out of the classroom. As soon as the door was shut, all eyes turned to Kouichi. The wheels began to slow in Kouichi's mind as he realized this. He hadn't meant for any of this to happen, and yet...

Quietly, he stood up and bowed politely. "If you'll excuse me," he murmured with great annoyance. He could practically see the smug face on Ogata's class. But none of it mattered. If just this once, he could set things right, it would be worth it. Standing up straight, Kouichi walked out, remaining stoic.

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Silence remained as he walked down the hall. An exasperated sigh left his lips and Kouichi murmured, "Kako...I'm...sorry for all of this." He wasn't sure exactly as to _why_ he was apologizing. It only seemed to matter that he did.

By now Kako had stopped running and had begun to walk, occasionally stopping to cry. In those times, Kouichi respectfully came to a stop and maintained his distance.

"Listen, I know you probably hate me for not telling you," Kouichi began again, "but it really wasn't my choice to tell you! You have to understand, they didn't want you to-"

"J-just...just leave me alone," Kako cried. Her arm rose to brush the tears away. More firmly, she told him, "I...I don't...w-want another explanation." Kako came to a stop and finally turned to face Kouichi. "I don't care."

Kouichi remained silent for a while as he ran her words over again and again in his head. "You don't care...?" he asked slowly, taking a step towards her. When she didn't move, his confidence grew. Taking another step forward, Kouichi told her, "You're lying. If you didn't care..." Another step. "...you would just turn around and leave right now." Another step. Kouichi stopped, feeling pressured by some unknown force to just run forward.

Again, Kako repeated, "I don't care," this time louder and with a slightly more angry tone. Her fists were clenched by her sides, Kouichi noted, something to watch out for.

He took several steps forward until they was only a yard between them. "Turn around, Kako. Turn around if you don't care," Kouichi told her. Two more steps were taken. "Show me you don't care." In the back of his head, he began to worry that she would do exactly that.

"You could have told me, Kouichi," Kako murmured. "You're...you're the one who doesn't care."

A grim smile appeared on his face. In a calm voice he told her, "You don't see me turning away."

There was a panicked look in her eyes that told Kouichi she realized her defeat. "You're afraid to."

The distance between them was closed quickly. "And why is that?" he pressed. They were now standing with an inch between them. _Tell yourself, Kako_.

"B-because...you're afraid I'll do the same right after!" Kako shouted, bringing up her fist.

Kouichi anticipated it and stepped back, bringing up his hands to catch her fist. "Now repeat all that to yourself, Kako. I couldn't have told you. I was afraid you would do exactly this. And so were Hideki and your father. You think they don't care? They're waiting for you to come back so they can apologize. Kako...I didn't mean to hurt you. I didn't mean for Duskmon to hurt Piximon, and I didn't mean for the diary to cause all of this. I didn't want you to lose Piximon, I didn't want you to wonder what else Hideki was hiding from you, and I didn't want you to realize that you've known your dad the entire time! So _please_," he growled, tightening his grip on her fist painfully, "just come back..."

The silence from before came back as Kako squeezed her eyes shut. Without warning, she threw herself forward. Kouichi stumbled back as he let go of her fist to catch her. "Y-you...stupid idiot," Kako muttered, crying softly into his shoulder blade. "I hate you..." Her voice cracked as she repeated the sentence over and over as if trying to convince herself.

Somewhat relieved at the words coming out of her mouth, Kouichi relaxed and let out a sigh as he wrapped his arms around her. "Nice to have you back," he whispered, allowing his eyes to slip shut.

Missing class was more than worth it.

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Half of the school day was spent in the principal's office. Apparently Ms. Kawai had taken over the class and Mr. Ogata had come to rant while Mr. Aizawa sat behind his desk, smiling pleasantly. Kako and Kouichi sat in chairs situated side by side, both gazing blankly at their principal. Whatever Ogata was rambling about went over their heads.

"...which is forbidden _as stated in the school rules_," Mr. Ogata lectured, glaring menacingly at Kouichi. "Your parents will be notified immediately-"

"If you're going to bother my mom, do so _after_ she comes home. If it's alright, Mr. Aizawa, I think I can tell her myself," Kouichi interrupted, his eyes not leaving the elderly man. Out of view from either of the adults, Kouichi slipped his hand down to grab a hold of Kako's, squeezing it in a reassuring manner.

Startled, Mr. Ogata turned to the principal. Still smiling, Mr. Aizawa nodded. "Very well. Thank you, Mr. Ogata. I'll take it from here," he murmured, inclining his head in the direction of the teacher.

Blabbering nonsense, Mr. Ogata tried to protest, but turned around and left as Mr. Aizawa waved a dismissive hand in his direction. Then turning to the children, Mr. Aizawa allowed a stern look to appear on his face. "Hideki and Miss Kimura will be notified, whether you meant it or not. The next order of business will arrive _soon_ if he keeps his word..." Shaking his head, Taishi rose to his feet and walked to the portrait to the left of his desk. "It's a beautiful piece of art, don't you think?"

"It's...a bunch of scribbles," Kako said pointedly. Her eyes followed her grandfather as he moved around the room rather restlessly.

Stopping at the window behind his desk, the man told her, "Your mother drew it. She was a born artist...like her own mother. You should see some of her other works. Your...father...she gave most of them to him." His hands were clasped behind his back. "He's here."

The door opened, revealing a tired looking Marise. Hideki, grinning widely, was about to walk into the office as well, when Marise slammed the door shut behind him. "I never thought I'd do that," Mr. Saito muttered, looking behind him warily as he leaned against the door.

"I would _appreciate_ it if you respected my furniture," said Taishi in an icy voice.

Smiling brightly, Marise withheld a chuckle as he pushed off the door and walked up to Mr. Aizawa. "Oh...of course, excuse me," he murmured, taking the old man's hand and shaking it heartily. "Now let's settle this-"

Quickly, Kouichi rose to his feet and let go of Kako's hand, reddening considerably. "Uh-...uhm, uh...h-hello sir..." he stuttered, standing stiffly.

"Sit, Kouichi."

Kouichi did as he was told and jumped at the sound of someone banging on the door. "LEMME IN!" Hideki yelled, hitting the door again.

"SHUT UP," Kako retorted, stomping her foot down.

Hideki continued to whine, "How come _I'm_ not included in this stuff?" There was another hit on the door.

Sighing, Marise allowed a hand to rise to his forehead. Massaging his temple, the man murmured, "Hideki, I do believe Rai needs an assistant in her classroom..."

"Bad lie! She hates my guts!"

"No, Hideki, she hates me, now please _leave_."

Footsteps leading away from the door could be heard along with annoyed muttering. After all was silent, Marise looked up at his father-in-law. "You don't mind, do you? No? Good," he said quickly, turning to Kako and Kouichi. "You two...I have no idea where to start. Kako, would you happen to have the egg?" asked Marise, his eyes glued to his daughter.

Kouichi anxiously turned his gaze to Kako. Her eyes were staring impassively at the desk in front of her. "No," she finally mumbled.

Marise clapped his hands together once. "Good! Not the diary either, I hope?" Kako shook her head. "The locket?"

Kouichi spoke up here, "No."

"Tomoki has Bokomon's book?"

"Yes."

"And Shinya's school has computers?"

"I-...uh...yes?"

In a sarcastic voice, Marise remarked, "Wonderful..."

"I see you're reverting back to your old self already, Marise," Taishi snapped.

"Nonsense, I was always like this!" insisted the younger of the two. He beamed down at Kako and Kouichi, ignoring the glum look on his daughter's face. "If all goes well, this will be over soon. Kouichi, do you have what Ryuusei gave you?"

"Yes," Kouichi said slowly, gazing up with childish eyes.

Laughing, Marise turned to face the window. "Perfect, perfect...Taishi, could you call Kouji, Takuya and Izumi in? No, no, I mean Junpei, Takuya and Izumi," he corrected himself quickly, impatiently tapping his foot.

Scowling, Mr. Aizawa reached for the phone and dialed a few numbers. In the meantime, Marise pulled up a chair on the other side of Kako and sat down, gazing at the girl with a sad expression on his face. Several minutes later, when the door opened, he rose to his feet and an impatient look dominated once more.

Takuya, Izumi and Junpei walked in with confused looks on their faces. At the sight of Marise, Kako and Kouichi, Izumi let out a squeak and covered her mouth. Takuya and Junpei exchanged grave looks.

"Take a seat," ordered Marise. He began to pace once more, furrowing his eyebrows as he told them, "It will be starting very soon. Keep your D-Tector with you at all times, and make sure your respective digimon aren't wandering off. This is mostly aimed at you, Kouichi. Lowemon and Duskmon are away from you too often. Kako, for the moment you'll be the one in charge of watching Shinya. I don't want you to restrict him from anything. Let him do whatever, so long as he gets an adequate amount of sleep and doesn't do anything too drastic. Kouichi, you'll be in charge of Kako. Izumi, you and Takuya will be on alert for Kouji and Junpei, you will be watching Ritsuo. Kanaye and Ai are the least of our worries at the moment. Any questions? No? Good. Get back to class." He said this all very quickly, not once meeting their eyes. Kouichi was greatly reminded of a commander of an army.

"Well _I've_ got a question!" Izumi retorted, raising her hand. Pausing, she added, "Uncle Marise. Anyway, why do we need two people to watch Kouji? And why do we need to watch him at all?" She folded her arms and stood rooted to the spot, despite Takuya's feeble attempts to drag her out of the room.

Junpei was paused at the door. Slowly, he turned around and questioned, "She has a point. Why aren't we worried about Kanaye and the others but instead Kouji?" He looked to Marise for an answer.

Growling irritably, Marise stopped and looked at them. "You will discover in time. Now _leave_-no, not you, Kouichi. You and Kako are to stay," he snapped, stopping and folding his arms in annoyance. "Hurry up."

Before leaving, Izumi stuck her tongue out childishly and slammed the door. Marise broke into a smile at that and shook his head. "Kako, you are not only in charge of Shinya, but the egg as well. I'm sure you know what it is."

"Uh...not Piximon?" Kako blurted, looking up somewhat distractedly.

Running his fingers through his black hair, Marise exhaled slowly. "No, Kako, not Piximon. Try again," he murmured, turning to the window and looking out calmly.

This time, Kouichi answered, "Lobomon. It's Lobomon, isn't it?" He rose to his feet and placed his hands palms down on the table in front of him gently. "There wasn't any need to call the others, was there? You could have just as easily told us. What's the deal?" he questioned, swallowing nervously.

"Very perceptive, but sometimes it's better to not get commands from peers. They aren't taken as seriously. Also, this way you two were more informed and comfortable. They're eavesdropping from the outside, but that matters little," Marise murmured, waving a hand towards the door while still looking out the window. His hands dropped to his sides. "Duskmon will be leaving us soon. What was injured will slightly heal. But still, the hurt will remain. Kako, have you discovered the answer to my question?" he inquired softly, turning around.

Before Kako could answer, Mr. Aizawa cleared his throat. "Lunch is in five minutes," he announced, directing his gaze towards Kako.

Nodding, Kako rose to her feet. Gazing down at the floor, she murmured, "It was...nice talking to you." With a stiff bow, she exited the room.

_Kako_, Kouichi thought, heartbroken by the scene. _Just accept it, please_. Letting out a sigh, Kouichi was about to head to the door when Marise told him, "Almost like you."

"What?" Kouichi asked in a startled voice.

Smiling, Marise asked gently, "It takes time to accept a parent who has always been in your life, yet a mystery to you, does it not, Kouichi? Last I checked, you were in the same situation."

With an dazed look on his face, Kouichi gazed up at Mr. Aizawa. _In the same situation_..._we're all in the same situation-at least, we're at least in a common situation with one other person_. _So if that's the case, I_..._guess it's like Kouji and Duskmon_. Thoughtfully, Kouichi murmured aloud, "Maybe that's why Duskmon's trying to help everyone..."

"I suggest you use this time to call Duskmon and Lowemon," Marise suggested, inclining his head in Kouichi's direction as the boy bowed.

Nodding, Kouichi exited the room. _We're in a common situation with at least one other person_. _At _least _one other person_...

-------------------------------------

Duskmon hissed in pain. He hated it. Weak, emotional, and he was in pain. A loud curse escaped him as he pulled his blade out of his arm. An explosion of a warm, fuzzy feeling he disliked greatly ran through his veins. _Damn that boy_, the digimon thought, slipping through the cold shadows and concentrating on where Kouichi was.

Seconds later, he reappeared in the shadows of a maple tree. In front of him sat Kouichi, staring off into the far distance with his back to the digimon.

"Duskmon," Kouichi whispered softly.

There were a few seconds of silence. A loud hiss escaped Duskmon as he felt a searing pain crawl down to his feet. _Not now_, he thought, eyes narrowing on Kouichi.

The boy looked over his shoulder. "You're fading," was all he said.

Duskmon suppressed an annoyed growl. _Good job, Sherlock_.

Surprised, Kouichi asked, "Can't talk?"

A shrug came before Duskmon thought, _How did you guess?_

Shaking his head, Kouichi turned the rest of his body to face Duskmon. "Thank you," he murmured, rising to his feet. One hand slipped into his pocket and fingered his D-Tector. He had no idea what he was doing, but he felt as if he needed to do it. The other hand extended itself in Duskmon's direction. "I'm really, really sorry about this, Duskmon," Kouichi murmured.

_I know_, Duskmon returned, eyeing the hand with a blank look on his face. _Go ahead_.

"I don't want t-"

_Go, or I'll kill that girl_. To back his threat, Duskmon held up a blade. _I may just be a ghost of myself, but I can still deal damage through you_.

The boy dropped his hand to his side and pulled out his D-Tector. "Will I...still be able to digivolve into you?" he asked, running his thumb over the smooth screen.

_I don't know_. _It may depend_. _For instance, if you completely lose control, you may digivolve into me_. _As to whether you can by will, we have yet to see, don't we?_ There was a wry smile on Duskmon's face. _Don't worry about it too much, Kouichi_. _You'll see me soon whether you want to or not_.

"I hope," Kouichi whispered, pointing his D-Tector at Duskmon. There was a blinding light as Duskmon's fractal code burst through. Slowly, it entered the D-Tector. _Good-bye, Duskmon_, Kouichi thought. Aloud, he murmured again, "I hope..."

The last thing Kouichi expected that day had happened. As the last of the code entered the D-Tector, a half-smile appeared on Duskmon's face. "Soon," he mouthed, before disappearing in a burst of light.

"I hope...someday soon," Kouichi murmured to himself, allowing his arms to drop slack to his sides. _Someday soon, I will repent for all of this regret_.

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A/N-

Back! I cut my hair and did my pre-test. Thank you all for being so patient about that! I was itching to type all week, lost track at the beginning (a lot of the diary was me blanking out, i.e. Hideki's section), I promise to get back on track.

THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS- **GemmaniGirl**

Review or PM or Flame.


	31. Smile For Me, Sing For Me

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Smile For Me, Sing For Me...Just Don't Hurt Me

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A bleak silence fell upon the area surrounding Kouichi. As far as he knew, it was extended a mile's radius. Yet just feet away, laughter could be heard.

"It isn't as easy as it seems, is it?" a gentle voice asked.

Not turning around, Kouichi lowered his head. "No," he answered, pocketing his D-Tector slowly. "It...it isn't. Is this how it feels when you see Kako? Like she's scanned you or something?"

Had Kouichi turned around, he would have seen the wry smile on Marise's face. The man walked up beside Kouichi and lifted his head to face the wind. "A storm seems to be approaching," he murmured thoughtfully. The two stood there in silence a while longer before Marise directly replied to the question. "I suppose...it would be the equivalent of that. Actually, the way I thought of it was more of the way you acted with _your_ father, Kouichi." While he admitted this, Marise turned his head to see Kouichi's expression.

Shocked, Kouichi withdrew his hand from his pocket, leaving the D-Tector behind. "W-what?" he exclaimed softly.

Smiling, Mr. Saito explained, "I didn't know Kousei all that well. I _did_ happen to see him after he walked away from that restaurant shortly before school began. There's a lot of hurt that can be found under the expression of someone, Kouichi. You would do well to remember that. For if we are hurt, the monsters within us are reawakened, and so would begin a time where we would attack all those who show insensitivity, whether intended or not. Some are able to control those monsters better than others." He paused there to let Kouichi soak the information.

"Are you saying...it was like I was insensitive to him?" Kouichi inquired, looking down again. His heart nearly skipped a beat. _Does he hate me for that? Maybe that's how Marise feels...I guess...if someone did that to me, someone important to me, I would too,_ he mused, feeling an overwhelming amount of guilt crash down on him.

There was a dry chuckle. Still smiling gently, Marise corrected him quietly, "I'm saying you _were_ insensitive to him. You had every right to be, as does Kako with me. Now you see, I need your help because of this." The smile became bright and wide.

Startled, Kouichi looked up in askance.

Nothing more was said from the boy as Marise explained, "I would like you to ask Kako to allow me to walk her home after school if she doesn't mind. There are things to be discussed that can never be fully covered, and before all of this I'd like her to know everything she possibly can! So will you, Kouichi?" He turned his facing to Kouichi, eyes dancing wildly with amusement as he anticipated the answer.

While he may not have been stuttering aloud, Kouichi's mind was filled with incomplete sentences. _He wants-what can I-he-that-Kako wouldn't-what will-who, he, huh?_ Letting out a groan and shutting his eyes, Kouichi shook his head to clear it of all thoughts. "Um...yes, sure," he said in a confident tone, opening his eyes and gazing unsurely at Marise. _Just what am I expected to do?_ The guilt came pouring down on him once again.

Marise just laughed, as if he knew this would happen. Clapping Kouichi on the back, he exclaimed, "Wonderful! I'll be waiting for her after school. That is, after I separate Hideki and Rai. The poor girl..." Muttering mainly to himself, Marise walked off.

'_Monsters within us_,' _huh? I know what he means_, Kouichi thought to himself. A part of him wanted to curl up then and there on the spot in a ball to defend himself, but he remembered Marise wanted him to talk to Kako. "Uh...s-so...where would she be...?" he suddenly stuttered, looking around him. _Maybe I should call up Lowemon_, he thought, but the thought of the digimon brought the memory of Duskmon back and Kouichi found himself immobilized by a painful feeling running through his veins.

Luckily, Kako appeared beside him, a small smile on her face. "Where would who be?" she inquired, regarding him with a curious look on her face. She didn't bother to hide her amusement as she continued, "You aren't cheating on me again, are you?"

"Are we a couple?" Kouichi suddenly asked, immediately regretting he did.

Kako was completely unaffected. "Um...that's...a great question! We should probably figure that out soon."

"We never did, huh?"

"Not really thoroughly."

Noticing they were getting off track, Kouichi cleared his throat and yelled, "So!"

"Huh?" Kako blinked.

"Um...so..." Kouichi said again, turning to face her for the first time. "S-so, uh, hey Kako?"

She smiled but said nothing, instead waiting for his question.

Swallowing, Kouichi continued, "How was your day today?" He mentally kicked himself for asking a question so stupid. _Get to the point. That's what Duskmon would say,_ he told himself.

Suddenly confused, Kako shot him a genuinely odd look. "Kouichi," she murmured, "What are you talking about? I think you'd know how my day was today. You were with me practically the entire time." There seemed to be something she was holding back as she pressed her lips together with great effort, but Kouichi failed to notice.

Instead, Kouichi looked up at the sky and pointed to the first cloud he saw. "That cloud looks like a horse!" he commented with a laugh.

"...Kouichi..."

"A rabbit, then."

Kako shook her head.

"Ice cream cone...?"

Again, Kako shook her head. Before Kouichi could say anything more, she pressed a finger against his lips, stretching out her arm instead of walking up to him. "Shush," she ordered. Taking a deep breath, Kako told him, "I...overheard you and...M-...Mr...uh..._Dad_ talk. You don't have to do that, you know..." Awkwardly, she dropped her hand to her side and looked away.

Rubbing the back of his neck, Kouichi smiled sheepishly. With an apologetic look on his face, he mumbled, "Sorry...didn't mean for that to happen. W-well, will you...?" Hope flashed through his eyes as he gazed expectantly at Kako.

She took several steps away from him, walking backward. "I...I don't know..." Licking her lips, Kako gazed at the ground. "But...it's true."

"Huh?"

"It does hurt...a lot...this...even for me," Kako managed to say, letting out a sigh and brushing her hair back. "And...about Duskmon..."

Kouichi froze again.

"I'm...really, really sorry, Kouichi," Kako told him, stepping forward.

Looking out of the corner of his eye at a nearby bush, Kouichi mumbled, "Don't...let it get to you. He _did_ deserve it. I mean, what with Piximon...and...everything..."

Biting her lip, Kako placed a hand on his shoulder gently. "M-maybe there was a point to killing Piximon if you think about it. Come on...we should meet up with everyone else before they start assuming. A-and I promise that I'll meet up with Mr. Sa-uh, I mean...my dad," she said hastily, hoping to get his mind off of things.

"Y-...yeah, I guess. Go ahead without me," Kouichi mumbled, nodding slowly. Kako walked off slowly, but surely. Sighing, Kouichi brought out his D-Tector and gazed at the blank screen. In his mind, he could picture Duskmon staring back at him. _For the final time, Duskmon...good-bye_. Even now, he could see that smile he had seen last on Duskmon's face.

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The rest of the day was fairly normal. Kouichi occasionally allowed rude remarks about Ogata's lack of skill escape, but mostly kept to himself. There was almost no trouble the entire day, but as expected, the day ended with a bang as Kouichi 'accidentally' dropped his bag off the table and onto the floor along with his books. The bell rang, saving him in the nick of time.

"And you say _I'm_ immature, Kouichi?" Kouji muttered exasperatedly as they exited the classroom. "Honestly, I think I ought to be vindicated here!"

Kouichi frowned. "No way, Kouji. You _know_ in the long-shot I'm a _lot_ more mature than you are," he scoffed. For affirmation, he looked to Kako, opening his mouth, but stopping mid-way. A sigh escaped him instead, and Kouichi placed a hand on Kako's shoulder, smiling down at her encouragingly as he murmured, "You know, you'll be fine."

Not meeting his eyes, Kako told him stiffly, "That...isn't what I'm worried about."

Unable to resist the conversation, Kouji jumped in. "Well then what is it?" he demanded, having been informed about the situation through passing notes with his brother who had been itching to scream out Ogata's faults. The notes had also been for Kouji's amusement.

"Nothing, okay? I...I'll talk to you later," Kako muttered, picking up her pace and leaving the twins behind.

Kouji looked at his brother and shook his head with an impish grin threatening to break through onto his features. Trying to resist, Kouji pressed his lips together. _Someone's edgy_, he observed, watching Kako run off. _And their oh-so_-dear _friend is upset because of it_. Kouji cleared his throat, noticing his brother gaze off into the distance without end. "Kouichi!" he finally barked when Kouichi refused to look away. "Let's get _going_."

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She inhaled deeply, pressing her back against the tree. _Please, let him leave, just let him leave_, she thought, looking away from the sight of Marise looking at his watch-less wrist with great interest and instead lifting her chin up and shutting her eyes. _I could...run away with everyone else, technically. There's enough of a crowd for that_.

An amused chuckle sounded beside her. "Well, you certainly have some interesting ideas. I can't say that's the first time I've heard that before, though," Marise told her gently. His usual smile greeted Kako as she opened her eyes.

_Oh, digimon help me_, the girl prayed, staring at the man before her mutely.

"Shall we go?"

Still silent, she nodded and slung her backpack on her shoulder. _Just...don't talk, and this will all go away. You're in a bad dream or something. It will be over soon_. Again to herself, she repeated in her head, _It will be over soon_.

Marise let out a happy sigh and looked up at the sky. "A storm is brewing, wouldn't you say?" he inquired, eyes glued to a small cloud as it very slowly made its way across the sky.

_The weather report said sunny. He's off_. Morose, she looked at the gray cement ground.

"There are nice winds..." Marise's voice began to falter as he continued, "Lots of clouds...hardly any...sun..."

As he sighed and stopped talking, Kako looked up, startled by his lack of speech. Her eyes stuck to him, searching for a reason.

A pained expression appeared on Marise's face. Despite it all, there was a small, sad smile that was impossible to miss. Softly, he murmured, "Harumi often would ignore me like this. Even...even when we were dating...she'd just walk without a word. You definitely can be as stubborn as your mother. I always tried not talking to her, but I couldn't help it." By now, they had picked up their pace. Neither father nor daughter met eyes, but instead stared at the ground before them, one emotionless while the other looked troubled. "Maybe one day...she noticed. She was considerate, perhaps too considerate. Maybe one day someone can show you Kako, that want to be with you. The feeling that assures you that everything is okay, that someone is there for you. Someday soon..."

"M-Mom," Kako choked, trying to get the words out smoothly. Tears stung her eyes and she tried again. "Mom...told me that if you don't talk to anyone...if you push them away...they'll hate you..." she told him, fisting her hands.

Silently, he nodded, looking at her from the corner of his eyes.

Kako drew a breath and continued, "She...said...it is...harder to love than to hate...but so long as we try to love, that's what counts." _Don't make me say anymore_, she begged silently, shutting her eyes and stopping on the spot.

Marise stopped too in time with her, calmly looking up in front of him. A harsh breeze brushed by, stinging like a whip to the face. Noticing Kako cringe and step back, Marise murmured, "Sometimes, Kako, and I suggest you remember this, we must stand up to whatever is given to us. Shrinking in terror at the slightest things, say the _wind_..." He placed a hand on her back and pushed her forward. Kako stumbled forward and stood up straight, looking back at him with a furious look on her face. "Shrinking in terror at the slightest things is what will make people hate you. If you cannot support them, they cannot support you. It is easier to hate than love. It is easier to run than stand up." He paused before adding, "And I prefer to see you stand up."

For the first time, the two locked eyes, and Marise smiled. It was far from his usual gentle smile, but a true, meaningful smile. "Let's get you home," he murmured, walking up to Kako and looking down at her.

With eyes as that of a child, Kako watched her father as he took a step forward and looked back expectantly at her. Tears began to blur her vision with time. _Don't...make me go alone_. Running forward, Kako stuck by his side, grabbing a hold of his hand and walking slightly behind him. _Please...for now_...

_Keep me safe_.

-------------------------------------

The two reached the house in less than five minutes. Marise had apparently gotten the key from Hideki and was able to open the door. He allowed Kako in first before walking in after her and shutting the door.

"You know," Marise suddenly commented, "Hideki often told me I was too interested in my work. Before your mother and I married, we did a great amount of research on the history of the Digital World. It was crucial that we fully understood what was happening, because one wrong step would result in the destruction of all. I guess we were opposites that influenced each other, your mother and I...she would work all the time and I would slack, but after we married, our roles switched. Such is life I suppose." Snapping out of his daze, Marise motioned to the couch. "You should sit, you know," he told his daughter.

Kako shook her head and gazed at him, waiting for him to continue.

Shaking his head, Marise pointed to the couch. He nearly laughed as Kako pouted and reluctantly took a seat, furiously slamming her hand down on the spot next to her. He obliged and took a seat next to her.

Without prompting Marise leaned back against the couch and continued his story. "Often, after Hideki was born, Harumi told me I was concentrating too hard on our work. I tried to reason with her and myself that it was because she was occupied with Hideki. That was hardly the reason.

"I suppose we weren't the best of families as I had originally hoped. I devoted my weekends to Hideki completely, or at least attempted to. But wherever I went came with me a part of my research, or something I had to finish. Hideki accused me of ignoring your mother. He accused me of more...I must say, he had a bad tongue even at a young age. The only reason you grew up with him was because of a great amount of bribing from myself and even more, Gen.

"You know they say you only realize what you've lost until it's too late. I was lucky to get a month's advance. Two, actually. I spent a great deal of time before you were born concluding the research. _Together_, mind you, with your mother. There were a few loose ties here and there. I tried to patch up as much as possible. You were born, and I made sure that everything would be comfortable for Harumi. We divorced a month after, and for a few weeks, I visited to make sure everything was going okay.

"Harumi was pressured by her father and Gen, so we cut relations after her remarriage. I attended. It was...a mess, to say at the least. Rain, and the marriage was outside. The cake turned into slop, the tables..." Marise paused to do his best to fight back the grin that threatened to show.

Beside him, Kako covered her mouth. She could clearly picture a mess that involved her stepfather. For some odd reason, she could also see a young Hideki grinning impishly and terrorizing guests. Choked laughter escaped her, though she did her best to remain quiet.

Marise joined her laughter, chuckling himself. "Yes...and Hideki did his best to tamper with decorations and whatnot. He wanted _everything_ to go perfectly wrong. Of course, I paid him for that too, but that will remain our secret, won't it?" the man added hastily, shooting Kako a weary look. "I recited a very long speech that made absolutely no sense to anyone at the wedding. Harumi was upset when she discovered the pact Hideki and I had made. I have a brilliant son...if he would just put his brilliance to use, it would be even better."

Kako nodded furiously in agreement. She opened her mouth, but stopped when Marise interrupted her, meeting her eyes with an apologetic look.

"Yet the entire time, for the entire month, I realized Hideki was one thing." Again pausing, Marise looked down at his hands and murmured, "The entire time, I knew that Hideki would never forget me. Harumi would never forget me, although she would push me away. But you would never know me. Whatever you saw of me that month after you were born would remain lodged deep in your memories. Although you had a great time in the spaghetti bath...and throwing spaghetti at me. Harumi told me it was my fault for attempting to feed you spaghetti at that age." He smiled at the memory. Bitterly, he said, "You see? It _is_ true what they say. When I wanted you three the most, you couldn't be there. When I wanted to run to you, I couldn't. I can't say it would have been better that you weren't born, Kako. That wouldn't have been fair, and I would have missed so much. Do you plan on talking to me now?" He sounded almost desperate. "Do I have to say anything more...?"

Guiltily looking away from him, Kako mumbled something.

"Kako...please...?"

Louder, Kako mumbled the same words she had before in the same incoherent manner, rising to her feet and racing to her room. Exhausted from the effort, Marise sank back against the couch and shut his eyes. _Perhaps I should try a different approach_. Quietly, he stood up and walked to Kako's room, watching from the doorway and she buried her face in her pillow to null the cries.

Sighing, Marise murmured her name and a select few words to calm her. When the effect took place, he sat on the edge of the bed, rubbing her back and not leaving her side until finally, Kako fell asleep.

-------------------------------------

It had been not too long ago. Perhaps a month. Definitely before the break, but well after the start of March, Duskmon had come to Kako.

She had never thought of it in great detail, but Kako realized now, after having fallen asleep and woken up shortly before her father left the room, that it had been an incredibly important moment in her life. It was hardly important in terms of life and death, but in terms of discovering who she was working with, that talk had made all the difference.

-FLASHBACK-

_Duskmon stood in the corner of the room, gazing out the window_. _The sunlight that managed to filter through the blinds grazed past his left side_. _The rest of him remained hidden in the shadows, calmly observing the outside world_.

"_You owe me that favor you know_," _Duskmon suddenly spoke up, though his eyes were glued out the window and it was more absentminded than intentional_.

_Unsure of what to say, Kako stopped putting away her books, almost thoughtfully_. _She told him after shrugging, _"_Yeah, what of it?_"

_Since she had fallen under his _'control' _from their bet, Duskmon had often come to Kako's house, staring silently out the window of her room_. _He was silent, she hardly ever noticed and never made a fuss about it_. _Yet despite the silence, there was a heaviness to the air, and Kako could only guess what he thought about_.

_They stood there, mostly in silence as Kako continued packing up her homework_. "_Feelings_," _the digimon said again, in the same abrupt manner_. "_What is it like to have feelings?_" _he inquired, looking away from the window with a troubled look on his face_.

_Kako had been holding a literature book in her hand at the time and nearly dropped it on her foot as it left her hands_. "_Feelings?_" _she repeated, jaw dropping in disbelief_.

_If he wasn't hesitant before, Duskmon certainly was now_. _In an attempt to make himself look uninterested in the manner, he turned away_. _Voice low, he said, _"_I want to know what it's like to feel_. _Does it make you_..._weak?_"

_She couldn't help but burst into a smile, something she never expected to do around Duskmon_. "_Duskmon, who said feelings make you weak?_" _Kako inquired_. "_If anything, it depends on what you're feeling_."

"_What we're feeling...?_"

I feel like I'm talking to a kid, _Kako thought_. _She hid a smile and explained_, "_Sometimes, emotions can be dangerous_. _They make you strong, but they can make you overly strong, or dangerous to nothing but yourself, I guess is what people say_. _Like Kouichi_. _He tries to keep his emotions at bay, and he hardly lets anything out_. _But when he really wants to protect someone, when he really wants to beat his opponent or whatnot_, _he'll spend all of his energy, emotion, everything into that_. _I mean in my opinion, the whole _'_stronger when you want to protect_' _is a bit cliché, but the next part to it makes sense_."

"_The next part?_"

_Nodding, Kako continued, _"_The one where they say you're weaker when you're angry or something?_ _It's true_. _When you're angry, you never think straight_. _There's a difference between being _angry _and wanting to _protect _someone, the way people see it_. _Anger and hatred cloud the mind_. _Love forces you to think rationally_... _I never thought too much about that part_."

_There was a pause as Duskmon considered this_. "_You're saying, basically, that the wrong emotions at the wrong time can lead to one's downfall,_" _he tried to summarize_.

"_Sure..._"

"_You don't know what you're talking about_."

"_Ya just noticed?_" _the girl retorted, slamming her binder on the table_. "_Listen, Duskmon_. _Feelings are feelings_. _We can't really control them, not forever_. _They come out in different ways, but they always show_. _It's only right that they come out_. _They don't make us weak, they don't make us strong, they just _make_ us_. _Does that help?_" _Helplessly, she sighed and dropped her hands to her side, unsure of what else she could say to clarify things_. _As far as Kako was concerned, she had confused him even more_.

_Surprisingly, Duskmon nodded_. _His next question startled Kako even more_. "_Then_," _he began_, _gazing at her and piercing through her eyes with his own, _"_What would you_...feel_ if you found out who your father was?_"

_His question evoked the most thoughtful silence Kako had entered that week_. "_I_..._I _don't know" _Kako admitted, amazed at her answer_. _She laughed_. "_I don't know! I really don't know_. _It's just a different matter_. _I guess maybe_..._scared_. _I'd be scared, I guess_." _Kako's smile slowly faded into a contemplating expression_. I would be scared. I would be scared out of my wits, _she told herself_. And I would be scared.

"_Would you feel weak?_"

_Kako nearly cursed aloud_. Just stop with the questions, _she wanted to yell, but instead said through gritted teeth,_ "_Yeah_..._I guess I would_."

_Satisfied that he made his point, Duskmon inclined his head_. "_Thank you for your time_," _he said almost mockingly before disappearing into the shadows_.

_Yet his point stuck to Kako_. _She would feel weak_. _There was the possibility that she would be hurt if she ever found out_. _Yet she wanted to find out_. _She wanted to get hurt_... _None of it made any sense anymore_.

Thank you, Duskmon_, Kako thought, slamming her binder onto the floor and falling back on her bed_. _Now, she couldn't help but wonder_.

Who?

-------------------------------------

Kouichi stopped as the screen loaded, revealing the pixelated form of Cloud standing beside the Highwind on the world map. Something just seemed to click to him, something he never realized before._That piece_...

Very quickly, Kouichi rose to his feet, dropping the controller to the floor unintentionally, and then taking a step to his left. He stopped, realizing he was going nowhere. No, it made sense. It made perfect sense.

_Cloud_. _Duskmon_. _Kouji_. The piece hadn't connected as he had thought it would. _Cloud_ hardly reminded him of himself. No, that was far from it. It was _Duskmon_. _Duskmon_ and _Kouji_. The piece he thought had fit perfectly was merely the same on one side. The other three sides weren't as he expected.

_I really don't know a lot about myself_, Kouichi realized, withholding a bitter laugh. The entire time he had been so caught up in observing his brother, _becoming_ his brother while his brother became someone else. Kouji's personality had seemed to fade and Kouichi desperately wanted to fill in the spaces.

And Kouji. Kouji and Duskmon were one and the same, almost alike save one side, which complemented the other's. They were even.

"But Duskmon's gone," Kouichi recognized fully for the first time that day. The blow hit him with full force as he collapsed backwards on the couch and screwed his eyes shut with a painful expression evident on his face. Guilt. Pain. Hate. Anger. He hated the negative feelings that were beginning to eat him whole, but that only hastened their workings.

Groaning, Kouichi lay himself down fully on the couch, ignoring the music, ignoring the game, ignoring the light from the TV. All he could see was the whiteness of the ceiling.

The whiteness of the ceiling. _Like in Kanaye's house_, Kouichi thought glumly, before sitting up with a start.

_Kanaye's house_. _The white_. _The windows that couldn't be_, he realized, slowly pushing himself off the couch. The controller was wound up, the TV turned off, the memory cards and CD taken out in less than five minutes.

Another piece of the puzzle fit. There was no window. It couldn't have been. _A hologram, maybe?_ Kouichi continued to guess quietly to himself as he absentmindedly pulled on his jacket while slipping on his shoes. Several times, he nearly fell over, but that didn't stop him.

What finally _did_ stop him appeared the second he opened the door. In front of him stood Kouji, whose hand was reached out towards where the doorknob would have been. The shoes were slipped off in a tired, surrendering fashion before being kicked to the side. The jacket remained on. "Kouji..." Kouichi did his best to sound enthusiastic, but the fatigue got to him.

"Nice to see you too. Out of my way, I'm busy. Were you going somewhere?" Kouji inquired quickly, pushing his brother out of the way and quickly removing his shoes. He was halfway towards his room when he turned around expectantly awaiting his answer.

"Um...no..."

"Oh, okay."

Kouichi watched lamely as his brother ran into his room. Instead of heading out, Kouichi shut the door and plopped back down on the couch. It could wait. _Until tomorrow_, Kouichi told himself as his eyes began to close slowly. _I'll just take a small nap right now_...

-------------------------------------

That morning, Kouichi was beyond convinced Kako's life was miserable and she hated him for forcing her to take that day to talk to her father. The fact that Kako rushed into class a second after he had those thoughts and the bell rang intensified them ten fold. So caught up in his dismay, Kouichi gazed down at his desk, whereas if he had looked up, he would have seen a cheerful, but tired smile on Kako's face as she took her seat.

Because of the thoughts that Kako hated him, Kouichi did his best to avoid her any chance he got. _She just pities me_, he told himself, _because I can't get anything right_. To everyone's utter amazement, even Ogata's, he remained silent throughout the entire class period. Kouichi even slowed down his work pace, hoping he could stay in at lunch if he didn't finish.

Unfortunately for him, he finished and Ogata wouldn't let him stay in, even though he claimed to need to finish a step of the last problem.

"I don't care, Kimura. It's perfectly fine, even if it's no excuse for me to deduct points. You're a horrible liar, now get out of my room!" snapped the teacher, shoving Kouichi out with a push and slamming the door shut.

Kouichi slouched as he hung his head, unable to bear the thought of seeing Kako while moving away from Ogata's classroom. _Maybe I should just spend all of eternity in the boy's restroom_, he thought. _She can't get me there. I really _hope_ she can't get me there_. When the thought began to scare him, Kouichi decided against hiding in the restrooms. _If only our lockers were large enough_...

He sighed and stopped in his place, nearly jumping as a girl exclaimed, "Kouichi, there you are!" Immediately, Kouichi froze and waited for the angry hit to his head, squeezing his eyes shut in anticipation.

Nothing came.

Surprised, Kouichi opened his eyes and looked around, finding Kako behind him. Before he could fully turn around, she threw her arms around his neck, pulling him back. "You've been ignoring me for the entire day! What's up with you?" demanded Kako, only pulling harder as he struggled to release himself from her hold.

"Uck-I...K-Kako!" Kouichi gasped, prying her hands away and turning around. "Stop trying to kill me!" He pointed at her accusingly as he continued, "I know you hate me, but you can kill me _after_ school!"

"Huh? _Hate_ you?" Kako repeated. She looked genuinely confused, much to Kouichi's surprise.

The boy was taken aback. Slowly, he asked, "Y-you...you _aren't_ mad at me?"

"I'm mad at you for ignoring me, but...why would I be mad at you?"

"N-never mind," Kouichi said quickly, looking away as he felt his face heat up. _Way to go, Kouichi. Still doubtful of the people you care about_.

Kako shook her head and looked around. Noting the few people that passed by, she grabbed a hold of Kouichi's hand and began running through the halls, searching a place where no one would bother them.

The two eventually found themselves in the far back of the school, where the field and the bleachers were, along with back of the building where the masquerade had taken place. It was on the back of this wall where Kako and Kouichi sat down and lay back, trying to catch their breath.

"Y-you...what was that about?" Kouichi finally rasped, swallowing a mouthful of air and nearly choking in consequence.

While Kouichi did his best to stop choking, Kako opened her backpack and withdrew something, which she covered with her arms. "I...talked to Dad last night...after...complications. And he told me I could tell you a few things."

Kouichi fell silent and waited for her to continue. Noting this, Kako inhaled deeply before continuing, "See that day where I found out Mr. S-I mean, Dad was my dad was when I decided to ask Rai about what I had wanted to ask you for a while in Hawaii. Because the diary said that Hideki was supposed to die and Rai said she was supposed to die, I figured they couldn't both die; it didn't make sense. I asked Rai and I guess she didn't want anyone to know.

"Apparently before, during, and after their marriage, my parents worked a lot on researching the Digital World. That's what a lot of Dad's diary is, and if it really interests you, you can read it. Hideki spent all of last night reading the research notes. There are a few pages here and there, some for other people to read and whatnot. He has some scarily interesting things in there, and it makes me wonder if Mom ever read...

"That's besides the point. Dad's as egotistical as every other guy out there!" Kako suddenly exclaimed, slamming one fist on the palm of her other hand.

Kouichi opened his mouth, then stopped and stared blankly at Kako. "Exactly _what_ does that have to do with any of this?"

Looking indignant, Kako insisted, "Everything! You'd think he would be as modest as y-I mean, as...a modest person, but he isn't!" She quickly covered the item resting her lap again, but by now, Kouichi had gotten a good look at it and didn't need much else to know what it was. "Anyway, Hideki was supposedly an _angel_ when he was little-" She was cut off in mid-sentence.

Beside her, the boy shot Kako a warning look. "_Kako_," Kouichi growled.

Kako quickly changed topics. Undaunted, she informed him even further, "Piximon was supposed to watch over me, yeah, but his main point was to open a gate to the Digital World in Hawaii, because Lucemon was supposed to have created some artificial gate by then, but something about Takuya...then there was a bunch of junk about Chaos being the root of the 'shadow system' and stuff about who's who and what's what. Hey, did you know Shinya, Naoko, Fujitaka, Ai and Kanaye are Grumblemon, Ranamon, Mercuremon, LadyDevimon and Devimon respectively? Poor Shinya. He's so awesome, but he's stuck with a bunch of losers." The girl shook her head and allowed part of the item in her hands to be revealed in the bright light that shone down on them and washed the blacktop.

"And the egg-"

She smoothly interrupted him and said, "Has a more important role than you do. It's Lobomon, I'm sure, and Piximon had to make sure we would get it. We can tell Rai and Hideki, but no one else. You know, it's kind of like a family..." Kako trailed off, musing this possibility in her head.

Kouichi shot her a confused look that prompted Kako to explain. Handing him the egg, she pointed to herself and Kouichi. "So you see, it's like this. I'm supposed to take care of the egg, but you're supposed to take care of me _and_ the egg! Get it? Wow...it's kind of like we're it's parents..." Her hands dropped to her side as she gazed endlessly at the egg.

"U-uh..." stuttered Kouichi, doing his best not to drop the egg. _Parents...?_

Kako looked up at him. "Hm?"

There was some more staring and stuttering. Swallowing, Kouichi finally asked, "Um...that was the best analogy you could come up with?" The slight hint of fear that was held in his eyes was easily ignored by Kako.

Understanding his point, Kako began to feel the warmth rush to her cheeks. She, too, began to stutter as she tried to explain herself. "W-well, see, I mean, I didn't m-mean...uh, tha-that is to say-" She cut herself off as heavy footsteps and mutterings were heard.

The two exchanged panicking looks. Startled, Kouichi shoved the egg towards Kako, who had been reaching for her bag, which was placed behind her. Just as Kako brought the backpack in front of her, Kouichi leaned forward again, quickly pressing his lips against hers as he aided her in placing the egg in her backpack. Kako nearly fell back in surprise, and by the look in Kouichi's eyes, she could tell he was equally surprised.

The footsteps stopped and an awkward silence ensued. Kouichi stiffly pulled away seconds after the egg was securely in the bag, and shut his eyes, letting out a small breath. Putting on his most casual of looks, Kouichi turned around and waved to the newcomer.

"Kouji! How are you?" the boy laughed, wanting to cry now that he knew who had stumbled upon them. "_Beautiful_ weather we're having, huh?" The laugh continued to echo for a few more breaths, until Kouichi allowed it to fade with a nervous edge to it.

Staring blankly from Kako to Kouichi, Kouji tried to comprehend the situation and his best plan to counter it. Several times, he opened his mouth. Several times, he closed his mouth. Finally, Kouji shook his head. "I'll...bother you two later. Just don't...uh, never mind," he muttered in an awkward tone before turning on his heel and quickly walking away.

Kako and Kouichi held their breath, waiting for the footsteps to fade. To double-check, Kouichi stood up and raced over to check around the corner. When all was clear, he trudged over towards Kako and collapsed on the spot. "That...was close," he breathed.

"Wh-what was that about?" Kako asked. Alarmed, she scooted away from Kouichi. There was no clue of what to think about, merely a great amount of confusion and distrust.

Reddening, Kouichi scrambled to his feet and exclaimed, "I didn't mean it!" Almost defensively, he added, "It was just so he wouldn't be suspicious and bug us about this later! I mean, kissing's one thing, but making a fuss over someone's backpack? Especially considering it's yours." Before he could continue any longer, Kouichi realized his suddenly defensive manner and his hands fisted by his side. Stepping back, he allowed his arms to relax and shut his eyes. "I didn't mean it like that," he murmured.

The girl just groaned. "We're so weird," she muttered to herself, shutting her eyes and leaning against the wall.

"Ditto."

"But...really, Kouichi." He opened his eyes to find Kako half-smilingly ask him, "Why?"

A heavy sigh passed his lips. Shaking his head, Kouichi took a seat again and murmured, "I don't know...I really, _really_ don't know." Kako rose to her feet, diverting Kouichi's attention from the heating blacktop.

"You know, I must've taken off five layers. Dad said there was going to be a storm, so I figured, hey, why not wear eighty billion sweaters? But it's sweltering hot..." Looking down, Kako beamed. "But it's better than not being prepared! At least I know Dad must've been lying!" she laughed, adjusting her backpack so it was more comfortable against her back. "Anyway, I'm going to head back to class. You'll be with us for the rest of the year, right?"

_I hope...unless I die from idiocy_. Aloud, Kouichi told her with a nod, "That's the plan."

Kako looked at him with a curious look on her face. It was completely unreadable. "Wanna head back with me, then?" she inquired, taking a few steps back.

Although Kouichi made a move to get up, he shook his head. "I'll...wait a while longer," he said.

Listening to Kako's footsteps fade just as Kouji's had, Kouichi began to wonder a number of things. _Why? Why is it that I suddenly feel like a complete stranger to the world?_ He winced as he rose to his feet and slipped on his backpack. If the days had ever been kind to him at all, today was hardly the day.

_They say there's a silence before the storm_, Kouichi realized with a laugh, _but I think the storm's just trying to get through_.

And yet, it all seemed to be going the same way.

-------------------------------------

Kanaye felt a ripping sensation run through him, threatening to tear him limb from limb, slowly, with excruciating pain. Grabbing a nearby doorknob was all he could do to prevent himself from falling to the floor, writhing and screaming in pain.

_Damn you, Lucemon_, the boy thought, letting out a shaky breath and inhaling. Nothing he could think of would stop the pain he had been feeling for the past week. Gardening, plotting, snapping at Ai and the others, nothing.

The pain left almost abruptly when someone else entered the corridor. Immediately Kanaye straightened his posture and turned around. "Kimura," he greeted the other boy casually, trying to keep his composure.

Startled, Kouichi looked up from the floor and found Kanaye with his usual annoyed glare. "Huh? Oh...hi..." he mumbled lamely. Sweeping the area around them with his eyes, Kouichi tried to find a possible escape.

"Your girlfriend seems happy..."

A pained look found it's way on Kouichi's face. Slow and awkward, he tried to explain, "She isn't...my girlfriend."

"That's hardly my concern."

"Um, yeah..." Kouichi looked away, gazing through the window of a nearby classroom. Uncertain of whether to stay or leave, he determined it was just best to wait for the bell as his savior.

Kanaye seemed keen on making a conversation, and Kouichi decided it was only polite to comply. Almost absentmindedly and to himself, Kanaye muttered, "She seemed a bit down the day before..." Instead of looking at Kouichi, he looked to the floor for an answer. The gears began to turn in his head, trying to produce a solution to his problem.

Adjusting his sleeves, Kouichi shrugged. While he wanted to explain, he doubted Kako would want him to, and so to avoid the topic, said instead, "I guess she's just like that. Really spontaneous, even with feelings..." He even laughed at the end of this, but it sounded more nervous than anything.

_Of course_, Kanaye thought, smiling inwardly. Carefully, he pulled up his right sleeve past his wrist, then let it back down, doing this all with his left hand. Again, he pulled it up and let it go. Several more times, he did this, creating a distraction for Kouichi as Kanaye looked away and said with a sigh, "Such is the way of girls. Ai threw the most obnoxious fit a few days ago..."

As Kanaye had wanted, Kouichi caught sight of what lay below the sleeve of Kanaye's right arm. His eyes focused on the revealing and covering of what looked like a black wristband, at least two inches wide. There was only a side view of it from where Kouichi stood, but he could see the slightest hint of something attached on top.

"...and so I told her if she didn't keep her act up, we'd cancel our reservations. You'd be surprised to know..." Kanaye continued to talk undaunted by Kouichi being distracted. His eyes quickly darted Kouichi and back to the floor. Understanding what it was that he saw in Kouichi's eyes, Kanaye turned his arm so the rest of the wristband was visible when he pulled up his sleeve, pretending it to be a nervous tic.

If Kouichi had been paying attention at the start, the words didn't exist anymore. His breath came out as a choke and his heart threatened to stop before hammering painfully in his chest. Atop the black of the cloth lay a black crystal embedded in a silver backing to be properly attached to the wristband. It resembled the same crystal Kouichi had seen in Kanaye's sword weeks ago. Mentally, the boy noted this and looked up at Kanaye (who by now had been looking up at Kouichi instead of down at the floor), pretending to be interested in his story. Yet the distracted look in his eyes gave him away.

Hiding a triumphant smile, Kanaye continued in an annoyed tone, "and so we had to go anyway, but when we got there, she dumped the entire bowl of soup on my head. I suggest once you two get too familiar with each other, that you don't go to fancy restaurants that cost anything above twenty dollars." Kanaye let go of his sleeve.

"I wasn't planning to take her anywhere, anyway! She's not my girlfriend," Kouichi groaned, letting out an exasperated sigh. "Even if she was, I've known her for a while, so she'd dump a bowl of soup on my head for nothing, no matter what the case was."

The smile was threatening to show. At that moment, as if on cue, the bell rang, and Kanaye allowed it to show, masking it as a sneer. "Well, I'll see you in class, Kimura," he said, walking past Kouichi.

_Class is the other way_, Kouichi thought to himself, walking in the direction opposite of Kanaye. _What's with him?_

-------------------------------------

Letting out another sigh, Hideki placed down the diary. The words he had been reading for the past hour and a half rang in his head.

'_It is not Rai that is meant to die, but Hideki_.'

He didn't care. He didn't care at all. He had known very well since Kako was born. He accepted that he would die. And yet, a part of him felt like he was afraid.

When he talked to Rai yesterday, as Marise had asked him to, a sudden fear instilled itself in Hideki. He would leave so many behind, even if it was just Kako or the twerps, or his games and weapons...he would leave Rai.

Rai, who meant just as much to him as Kako or even the rest of his family. Kako would take his death hard, but she would be fine. Kouichi and the others would make sure of that, Hideki knew that well. But he couldn't even _begin_ to fathom what she would be thinking...what she was thinking now. Then again, would she care?

Hideki pushed away from the desk and stood up, letting out a sigh and hoping his cares would go with it. Kako was due home any minute with their father, and Gen would be coming home from a business trip at night. He wanted silence, but that silence wasn't here.

_I'll ask Dad for the keys_, he decided, plopping down on his bed and gazing at the dark ceiling above him. For some odd reason, Hideki had decided from a very young age that all his ceilings were to be painted black, and to that day, it kept with him. _Maybe I should repaint it yellow_.

For minutes, all that could be heard was the ticking of the clock that had been fastened on the wall just above his desk. There was no breeze, no cars, no laughter, no footsteps. Just time. Finally, Hideki let go the breath he hadn't realized he was holding back, and shut his eyes when all other noises resumed.

Yesterday Rai hadn't exactly welcomed him in the classroom. With a simple remark about how she didn't need an assistant, she had hoped to get him away. Hideki, bored at the moment, decided an assistant would be all the better, and did his best to play the part. Eventually, after several accidents with graduated cylinders and test tubes breaking (a count of two and five respectively), Rai took Hideki by the hand as would an angry mother with a crying child, and dragged him out of the room, slamming the door behind them. For several minutes, she yelled at him nonstop, not caring who heard, only that no one came out of the room or passed by the hall. And her last words were what hurt Hideki the most. '_Friend or not, Hideki, I don't care for you one bit. Just leave me be_.'

He had done as she asked. He didn't like it, but he had felt a certain obligation, as he had when she was with him always, by his side, laughing. The same need to protect her and her wishes drove Hideki away, and left Rai alone in the hall, the only mission on her mind to get back to work.

A slam of the door awakened Hideki from his thoughts. "Hideki, where are you?" called out the impatient voice of Kako.

"I'm sleeping. Bug me later, kid. It's your turn to make dinner, anyway," Hideki snapped back in return, lazy and loud.

"Okay...I guess you don't want these letters, then."

Hideki sat up and turned his head to his little sister, who stood at the doorway with two papers in her hand. "Letters?" he repeated, about to stand up.

Grinning impishly, Kako waved the letters around as she made elaborate gestures and told him, "Of course, _Rai_ told me to give this to you, but it's not _that_ important. You can sleep first and read later." A giggle very nearly escaped her as she turned around with the letters raised above her head.

Growling angrily and jumping to his feet, Hideki snapped, "You little-little..._girl_..." for lack of a better insult, he paused after his struggle for words and then continued, "Your stupid diary'll be made public to the entire _world_ when I get my chance!"

"KEEP SAYING THAT!" Kako threw the letters at him before running to her room and slamming the door behind her.

That left Hideki to fumble with the flimsy papers that quickly cut the air and hit the ground. He struggled to peel them off the carpet floor and gaze at the writing. One was from Kouichi, and this was made plain and clear from the large letters that looked as if they were scrawled quickly, or so Hideki guessed by their messy nature. Hideki worked on the staple of the second letter. It had been written with some thought, and at the bottom of the page, Hideki saw Rai's name written in clean, blue ink.

_Save the best for last_, he told him self positively, wandering dreamily to his room as he decided to read Kouichi's first. It didn't take him too long, and he eventually found himself musing quietly to himself, "So Kanaye's controlling his sword through some jewel thing..." There were other things that Hideki chose to ignore. He carelessly tossed Kouichi's note to the side and began to read Rai's. Whatever smile he had held at the beginning soon melted away. Hideki's grip on the paper tightened, crumpling its sides. When he reached the finish, he let out a loud curse, crumpled the paper and threw it away from him, not caring the least that it rolled out of his room. Hideki slammed the door and threw himself face down on his bed, burying his face into his pillow. For now, it felt as if that was all he could do, but he so badly wished there was more.

-------------------------------------

"Is it done?" the lady asked, impatiently tapping a finger on her other arm.

The boy nodded but quickly added, "It _will_ take some time, you realize. This isn't some one-day thing. It will take hours now, especially since everything has to be redone."

A rare smile graced her lips. "I know."

This surprised him. Raising an eyebrow, Kanaye inquired, "Change of heart, Ophanimon?"

"Hardly. This isn't your business. I take it we'll have to wait two days plus?" Rai asked instead, the smile immediately fading into a stolid look.

Not one to be so easily deterred, Kanaye said, "Yes, two days plus. So I take it you had a fight with him again?"

She was quiet for a while. "You saw," she finally spoke quietly, looking away as she told him, "We just aren't seeing things the same. Hardly something that matters."

"But it's more than that, isn't it?"

"Don't wander where you aren't supposed to, Devimon," Rai hissed, turning away from him fully. "This isn't of your concern, now leave." She made a motion to the door.

Smirking, Kanaye bowed mockingly. "Well, milady, I'll see you in two days."

Rai snorted in disgust. Folding her arms and turning back around, she reminded him, "Unfortunately sooner."

"So true." Kanaye paused in front of the door and added, "I suggest you spend your time carefully. You wouldn't want to waste a moment, would you? And you know as well as I that either of us would be in dire trouble for this."

"Of course, which is why you ought to be careful," Rai cut in, waving an impatient hand in his direction. "Just go."

Adding another mock bow, Kanaye made his exit, finding that despite the fact that he seemed calm and normal, his trembling fingers that twisted the doorknob gave away every ounce of anxiousness he held within him.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Plotting out chaps, reading more, STAR test up, gaming, homework, random work around the house. Next chap will be up soon, very hopefully, unless I decide to go in super detail mode (like this one).

Thank you very much for the reviews:

**GemmaniGirl, Lady Hikari-Yami**

Review or PM or Flame.


	32. Threads

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Threads

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Shinya gazed at the computer, his eyes endless pits of brown. Again, that feeling of being disconnected ran through him.

_Takuya, please, where are you?_ He wanted to cry out again and again, and several times, when he managed, no one answered him. It hurt him, each second passing inflicting double the pain than the second before it.

It hurt that no one was with him. The entire world seemed to have turned their back to him, just waiting for him to destroy everything. But he wanted to help the world, not destroy it.

A dark voice laughed at Shinya, _Fool, the world has turned away from you. You shouldn't wish to help what hurt you_.

_No, leave me alone!_ Tears streamed down Shinya's face, and he could feel them. Nevertheless, he continued to type, even faster than before. The pain from his hands had been numbed somehow, but deep inside, Shinya could feel a fire calling him to stop, to break free. _Leave me alone, you stupid thing_, he tried again.

_Stupid? Hah, that's Duskmon_. _At least_ I _didn't get scanned_. _Be grateful you get someone strong like me and not a weakling plagued with emotions_.

Confused, Shinya let his guard down, allowing Grumblemon to continue his job. A horrible feeling ran through him. It turned around as a shiver up his spine. _Duskmon...scanned? Liar_...

And then, as if he was sapped of all of his strength, Shinya felt himself pulled back into reality. A sickeningly empty pit that was his stomach began to bubble without reason. Before he could even stand up, the young boy slid off the chair and onto the floor, bursting into tears. All that had been on the computer had been closed, and the computer shut down, showing no sign he had been on it. To Shinya, that wasn't what mattered. _He_ knew what he had done. _He_ was guilty. _He_ had to lift with it.

Heavy footfalls echoed as they approached his room. The door was thrown open to reveal Takuya and a gasping Izumi. "Shinya...?" Takuya started, quickly dashing forward to help the younger Kanbara up.

Coughing and choking, Shinya allowed the tears that had been held back to fall freely, wetting his face and his brother's shoulder. When at last the tears and cries had subsided somewhat, Shinya managed to say in an accusing and frightened voice, "You...you didn't come..." Weakly, he pushed his brother away.

Eyes wide with disbelief, Takuya stretched his hands out towards his brother. "Sh-Shinya...we just came," he told the boy, trying to explain himself. But Shinya just pushed him back.

Those minutes, he had no idea what went through his head. One second, he was furiously glaring at his brother, and the next, he was pushing Takuya out of his room, screaming and yelling. He vaguely remembered kicking the older boy.

At the end, when Takuya and Izumi were on the other side of the door, he screamed, "You didn't help me! You just left me here to die! I hate you, Takuya! I hate you!" He felt his fingers yanking on his hair, tearing the goggles out. The minute they left his hand and flew towards Takuya, the second he shut the door with a loud slam, Shinya realized what he had done. Staggering in a frightened manner backwards towards his bed, away from the bed, he let out a sob.

_This...wasn't supposed to happen_, he thought, curling up by the base of his bed, hugging onto his knees tightly. _Someone, please...save me from myself. Anyone_...

That night, if anyone in the house listened hard enough, soft cries could be heard coming from Shinya's room. And Takuya, whose room was next to his brother's, heard everything loud and clear.

-------------------------------------

At the base of the stairs, Kanaye paused, knowing very well what awaited him when he reached his room. There was no way he could avoid it unless he decided to move out permanently without anyone knowing. In the end, he decided it was better to face it than put it off for later.

He climbed to the top of the stairs, strolling past the other rooms in a confident manner. He refused to throw away his dignity and run off like a coward. He refused to be reduced to the barbarian that she apparently wanted him to be. No, _he_ was their leader and everything would go as _he_ wanted it to.

A burst of courage fueled his as he threw open his door and walked straight towards the bathroom (his room was one of the few with a bathroom in it, for privacy purposes). _First a bath_, he decided, ignoring the startled form of Ai, who sat on his bed, lips pursed in anger.

"Don't walk away from me!" Ai barked, standing up and making a move to follow him.

Narrowing his eyes into a glare and turning around, Kanaye commented, "Ai, I know you want to take a bath with me, but now really isn't the time. Now if you don't mind..." He fought the urge to laugh at her bright red look of protest and slammed the bathroom door in her face. _Maybe I shouldn't have gone that far_.

-------------------------------------

Minutes later, Kanaye emerged from the bathroom with a towel on his head, fully dressed. There was an annoyed look on his face when he discovered Ai was still there, sitting on his bed with her arms crossed and her eyes focused in a furious glare in his direction.

"Out," Kanaye said, sitting in front of his computer.

Ai continued to sit there. She told him angrily, "Lucemon's losing faith in you. He says-"

"_Lucemon_ is a fool," Kanaye interrupted, absentmindedly toweling off his hair before throwing the towel to the side. "To listen to him is like listening to a cockroach," declared the boy seconds later, as he waited for the computer screen to load.

Letting out a growl, Ai stood up and stamped a foot down. She told him hotly, "You don't _get_ it! Lucemon will _hurt_ us if we don't do as _he_ wants! What are you thinking, Kanaye?" She very nearly screamed this all out.

Kanaye rose to his feet and laughed, "That matters little. I don't care _one_ bit for Lucemon's wants. _I'm_ in charge and everything will go as _I_ want it to. If Lucemon wants his way, he can arrange this all."

Ignoring Ai once more, he made his way downstairs to the main computer room, flicking a switch to get rid of the hologram that hid the computer out of view as a window. The white disappeared and Kanaye took a seat in front of the screen, trying to push away Ai's presence as he overlooked all that Grumblemon had completed through Shinya.

A smile graced his lips. "Perfect. At this rate, everything will go according to plan, give a week. Ritsuo!" Kanaye called into a nearby speaker, serving its purpose as would a walkie-talkie. "Come up here. You'll be in charge of Grumblemon's progress," he said before standing up and walking to the exit of the room, nearly shouldering Ai when she refused to move. Instead, Kanaye grabbed her shoulders and locked gazes with her.

"Are you having fun?" he asked in a low voice, a cold and unforgiving look suddenly flashing onto his face.

Defiantly, Ai continued to glare at him, but said nothing. He could tell just by her breathing that she was afraid. Satisfied with this, Kanaye pushed her aside gently and walked out of the room. "You would do well to remember who is in charge, Ai," he told her softly, heading back up to his room. _A nap would be nice_.

"As would you, Kanaye," Ai whispered, once he left. She let out a belabored sigh before collapsing on the spot, hands intertwined with strands of her hair. _Why can't you understand?_

-------------------------------------

"Yes...yes, thank you, Miss Kimura. Alright. Oh? Okay, I can wait a second," Kako said, smiling happily to herself. "Kouichi...?"

"Kako. What's up?" she heard Kouichi ask. He sounded out of breath.

_Training with Dad...?_ Shrugging it off, Kako asked, "Want to come over tomorrow? Unless you're too preoccupied with training with my dad, who _shouldn't_ be training you tomorrow, because he _promised_ we'd sit down to talk."

There was silence. "W-well, if you guys are going to talk, I shouldn't bother you," Kouichi told her, obviously confused. He started to say something else, but stopped.

"Shut up, Kouichi," Kako scowled, slamming her hand on the desk nearby. "You're coming over, got it? Alright, come over here tomorrow and then I'll show you something awesome. Hey, do you know if Takuya and Izumi are busy tomorrow? Oh, never mind. I just remembered, Takuya's off to apparently game with Kouji and Izumi has a piano recital," she said, mainly to herself. "Well I'll see you tomorrow morning! Bye," Kako said sweetly before slamming down the phone.

Smiling victoriously, she turned around and crossed her arms. "And _you_, Mr. Sulky," Kako reprimanded, "ought to get out and smell the fresh air. Hideki, you're coming tomorrow, too!"

The reply was preceded by a sigh. "Yeah...whatever." Her older brother allowed his shoulders to slouch forward as he flipped through the page of the book.

Kako blinked in surprise. Frowning, she murmured, "I thought you said you'd never read that book." She ran over to his spot on the couch and read the summary from the back. "You said it was depressing or something!" Kako accused.

A scowl appeared on Hideki's face. "Yeah, so what?" Hideki returned defensively, hiding the book from Kako's view. "Go away."

The entire week had passed like a dream for Kako, but that didn't prevent her from feeling the negative aura (as she called it) that emanated from her brother. Hideki's obvious anger was ruining her day so far, and at the moment, all she wanted was for him to shut up and at least _pretend_ to be happy.

Of course she wasn't being the nicest little sister in the world, but her point was reasonable, even to Hideki.

So Hideki book marked his book and put it away. "I'll strike a deal with you, girly. Today, you leave me to mope. Tomorrow, I'll accompany you and twerp one to Dad's place, and I'll be happy. Deal?" he asked through gritted teeth.

"Deal!" Kako answered in a singsong voice, running off.

Fridays just weren't Hideki's days.

-------------------------------------

The rest of the day came and went for the many. For hours before midnight and even after, Kouichi heard the subtle typing coming from his brother's room. In the Kanbara household, Takuya had the same problem.

It seemed as everyone was awake doing one thing or another. For some odd reason, sleep would not come to either Tomoki or Junpei. Izumi had been practicing for her recital all day, and the music repeated itself endlessly in her ears that sleep refused to come.

Kako lay awake, listening to the loud snorings of her stepfather and the mumblings of her brother, both just across the hall in their respective rooms. She guessed Hideki was on the phone. It certainly sounded as such.

Yet the all eventually found sleep, despite the fact it may have been a mere hour or two, and awoke early in the morning, tired, yet refreshed in a certain sense.

As soon as she rose out of bed, Kako made it her first priority to get ready, and barely hid her excitement as she called Izumi to wish her luck during her recital. In turn, Izumi called Takuya to remind him of his 'appointment' at Kouji's house, and the goggle head woke up Shinya, sent him off with Tomoki and Junpei for a walk before dashing madly to Kouji's house (he didn't realize it was only seven in the morning) and proceeded to be the wake-up call for the twins, each having turned off their alarm.

The minute the doorbell rang at the Kimura household, Tomoko Kimura shook her head with a small smile. Placing her dishes in the sink, she called out, "Boys, wake up! Takuya's here, and Kouichi, you should be going to Kako's house, shouldn't you? I'm off to work." She could practically hear them yelping as they realized the time. Happily laughing to herself, she opened the door and told Takuya, "They should be up about now. If Kouichi refuses to go, make sure you and Kouji kick them out. If you want breakfast, it's in the kitchen."

"Yes ma'am!" Takuya exclaimed, saluting and standing to the side as Ms. Kimura exited the house and left with a quick wave to Takuya, thanking him. Allowing his hand to sharply be brought down to his side, Takuya marched clumsily into the house, nearly tripping as he approached the threshold. As soon as the door shut, he was back to his slacker self, one hand rising to his stomach as he groaned, "Foooooood!"

"I'm _not_ going!" Kouichi screamed, running into the kitchen.

Kouji ran in after him, completely ignoring Takuya. "Yes, you are!"

"NO!"

"YES!"

"NO, NO, NO!" Kouichi screamed, holding the second toast out of Kouji's reach as he stuffed the first into his mouth. Out of options, he threw the bread at Takuya, who gratefully caught it and stuffed it into his mouth. Grinning widely, Kouichi said again, "NO."

The twitching of Kouji's eyebrow was enough to tell Takuya that the younger boy was angry. He quickly finished off the rest of the bread and walked up to Kouji, slamming his hand against the bandana boy's back repeatedly for several seconds. "You know, I think Kouji and I need to have a talk, Kouichi! Right, Kouji?" Takuya said loudly. He grabbed Kouji's hand and dragged him away from Kouichi with great difficulty.

Angrily, Kouji hissed, "Let me go!"

Takuya complied, but quickly added in a low voice, "Your mom told me that I have to team up with you to throw him out, so we'll take _this_ plan of action. I'll ask him to come game with us, you'll pretend to leave. Take his shoes and jacket and throw them out before this, then act as if you're going out yourself. He'll come towards you, I know it, and then I push him out and you yank his arm to throw him out if need be!" He stood with his hands placed on his hips as if he were a superhero, laughing without a care. "Now, let's go, sidekick!" he exclaimed, pointing to the air in front of him with his right index finger.

_I let these things get way into his head a bit too much_, Kouji thought. The bandana boy (after shaking his head thoroughly) nevertheless aided Takuya in his efforts. It didn't take much to throw his brother's shoes and jacket out, but feeling guilty, managed to refrain from _throwing_ and instead neatly placed them outside on the first step, jacket folded and placed on top of the shoes. He shut the door and proceeded to put on his own shoes, making way to turn the doorknob as Kouichi and Takuya came out of the kitchen, snickering.

Kouichi immediately stopped, noticing his brother. "You're leaving somewhere?" the twin asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I figure I'm not really needed here at the moment," Kouji replied casually, and with great truth. The _last_ thing he wanted was to be stuck in the house alone with Takuya. The only reason he had agreed was because he thought his mother would be there.

Puzzled, Kouichi tilted his head in askance, stepping towards his brother. Takuya situated himself behind the boy. Kouji's hands tensed.

Too late, Kouichi realized what they were planning. He barely turned ninety degrees as Takuya pushed him and Kouji threw open the door. Kouichi yelped as he stumbled sideways over his shoes and jacket, and the ground rushed up to meet his back. There was a slam of the door, but pain was all Kouichi's five senses detected.

A groan escaped Kouichi. He rose to his feet and pulled himself up the steps, slipping on his shoes and then his jacket. As he felt the pocket of his jacket, he pulled out a note where his D-Tector was.

'_Call it _motherly instinct. _Love, Mom,_' read the note. Sighing, Kouichi put the note back in the pocket and patted it fondly. _I'm amazed she bothered to remember what the D-Tector looks like_, he thought, recalling the day before yesterday, when she had asked where Duskmon was. Sullenly, he explained everything, ending with showing her the D-Tector and explaining he had to scan Duskmon because nothing else could be done. She had shown surprising understanding, and let the matter drop.

_I owe her _something_. I just wish it wasn't this_, Kouichi thought grimly, allowing his hand to rest inside his pocket as he began his walk. He contemplated stopping at Marise's bookstore for counseling, but decided against it. The last thing the man probably wanted to hear was how someone was afraid of his daughter.

Instead, Kouichi walked straight to the front door of the house, standing bravely until the very last second, when he cringed as he pushed the doorbell. The ringing sounded through the front of the house, but could be heard clearly outside.

Much to both his relief and chagrin, Hideki answered the door. From behind Hideki, Kouichi caught a glimpse of Gen sipping coffee and regarding the TV quite stoically, and relief won out.

The boy cleared his throat. "Um, Kako's here, right?" Kouichi asked hesitantly, wondering whether he should just run now. He very nearly did when he saw the dull look Hideki was giving him, but something told him to hold out.

"Leave him alone!" a disapproving voice scowled. Hideki was pushed out of the way, revealing Kako, annoyed, hair down in a mess. "Sorry about that. Hideki...you said you'd at least _pretend_ to be happy!" she scolded her brother.

Hideki put on a shocked look, pretending to be taken aback as he stepped back and brought his hand up to the general location of his heart and gasped, "You're right, Kako! What was I thinking? My brain must not be where it _should_ be!" He sighed and shook his head in a disapproving manner.

Under her breath, Kouichi swore he heard Kako say something like, "Is it ever?" but made no comment.

Rolling her eyes, Kako pushed her brother to the side and stepped outside, looking positively furious. "Sorry about that. He's such an _idiot_, especially since when Dad came to school...he and Rai had a fight." She explained this all to him in a low voice, shutting the door behind her. A sigh. Kako brushed back a few stray hairs and murmured, "Anyway, for the reason I called you. We'll have to wait for Hideki just a few more seconds..." She began to pace back and forth, every few seconds sighing impatiently.

Kouichi watched in amusement, leaning back against the fancy hand railing that had been put in for the solitary step before the house. It extended about a yard pas the step, however, and only existed on one side of the stairs. The boy folded his arms and hid a smile. Despite all the losses, despite all the deaths, the grievances, the casualties, the horrors that they had been facing, he felt strangely..._happy_. It almost seemed like a crime to burst into a smile while watching Kako, dressed in a peach colored theme, pacing back and forth, with her hair pulled back into a ponytail. In a way, it reminded him of their childhood. And yet, he was happy. Nothing else mattered for those few seconds.

"Duskmon," Kako suddenly started, stopping in her spot and turning only her head towards Kouichi. She opened her mouth, but the words stopped at her throat, refusing to come out. Although she did her best to try to spit them out, they refused to budge, and all she could do was swallow them back down again. Guiltily turning away, Kako felt as the beauty of the moment was slowly replaced by a dark cloud of pain.

As if to save the two from their feelings, Hideki walked out of the house, twirling his key chain on his right index finger and shutting the door with his left hand. He noticed the mood of the moment and stopped dead in his tracks.

"Bad time...?"

"N-no," Kouichi said quickly, pushing away from the railing and dropping his hands to his side. "Uh...what's this about?" he asked instead, smiling and trying to sound interested. The wavering in his voice only emphasized the fact that he was distracted.

Hideki chose to ignore this and motioned for the two to follow him. "Come on," he muttered. "Dad'll blame me if you don't get there in five minutes." He led them to the car and opened the doors.

After a few verbal battles where Kako and Kouichi fought to put the other in the front seat beside Hideki, the young man barked for the two to just sit in the back. He hardly felt lonely, much less annoyed that they weren't sitting beside him.

Blushing, Kako muttered something under her breath, but that ended everything then and there. There was silence as Hideki skillfully drove them, save the cursing every few seconds when the car in front of them was going too slow, or the car behind too fast. Kouichi reluctantly gave into his body's demands and he found himself nodding off, swaying from side to side as Hideki changed lanes again and again.

The queasiness stopped abruptly and was replaced by childish curiosity as they pulled up in front of what seemed like a mansion of sorts. Kouichi guessed it was just an extremely extravagant house, because it seemed only slightly larger than the surrounding houses. Letting out a laugh as he shut the car door, Kouichi joked, "What's this? Second house?"

Hideki had started up the path to the front door with Kako dashing in front of him. He did turn around to tell Kouichi, "No, silly. This is our dad's house." The almost bored expression on his face flew over Kouichi's head, and the words seemed to hang still in the air.

_Marise's house_..._! _

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"You _lied_, Dad! It's been sunny all week!" Kako retorted.

All four were seated in the grandiose living room, furnished with simple, worn-out couches of dark green leather, with an almost random addition of a rug thrown down the center of the couch that seemed made for the couch as it only reached the floor. The two couches were adjacent to each other, each able to seat up to three people. Another rug lay in the middle of all of this, and seated upon it was a coffee table with a surface of glass, and a majority of this was covered in a beautiful lace tablecloth.

Kouichi swallowed with great difficulty as he took this in. "I guess even bookstore owners live in houses," he murmured with awe, finding it hard not to scream and run in a rampage, ranting about how he must be in some odd dream or another.

Amused at this, Marise inquired, "Did you think we lived at the bookstore?"

"Actually..."

An eyebrow was raised.

Nodding, Kouichi admitted, "Yes. That place is big enough as it is. I mean, it's got a cafe, a storage room, all those books, the training room, another empty room, a storage room _in_ the training room and all those other rooms you're probably hiding!" His eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. "Next thing I know, there'll be some underground chamber!" he exclaimed.

With a laugh, Marise informed the boy, "Actually, there's something similar to that."

"SEE!"

"_Doesn't_ matter! _He lied_," Kako snapped, trying to bring back her earlier point.

Hideki seemed insistent on staying at the topic currently on hand. "You know, a house like this has its advantages..." The boys all lent their ears.

Noticing that everyone was ignoring her, Kako screamed, "Are you listening to me?"

But Hideki just continued casually, "I mean, with a place as large as this, you can do pretty much _whatever_ you want, _wherever_ you want." He paused to take a look at Kouichi, who was nodding in agreement and looking quite thoughtful. Hideki narrowed his eyes.

_Writing, listening to music, yeah...doing whatever I wanted. I think I could even play videogames in peace!_ Kouichi nearly cackled at the prospect, but instead continued to nod and wait for Hideki to continue.

Taking it into consideration that Kouichi could possibly be more perverted than he had initially thought, Hideki leaned back and put an arm on the back of the couch. "And no one will really care if you get drunk. Heck, I could get drunk here, and to avoid me Kako would just have to either go outside or upstairs! It's like a drunk man's heaven," he declared, letting out a sigh and shutting his eyes.

The furious nodding had ceased and was replaced by a look of disbelief on Kouichi's face. Disturbed, he found himself twitching nervously. Kako, too, had stopped screaming and instead found herself gazing wide-eyed in horror at her brother.

"So you see, I think it's a perfect reason to get drunk right now!" Hideki exclaimed, making a move to rise to his feet.

The girl was shocked, but not so much that she couldn't manage a loud, "NO WAY!"

Nodding solemnly, Marise murmured, "She has a point, Hideki. We'll continue our drinking game later." His look clearly said, '_Not in front of the kids_.'

"YOU TOO?" Kouichi screamed, sitting on the edge of the couch.

Placing a hand on her mouth, Kako rose to her feet and dashed off. Instead of following her example, Kouichi groaned and threw himself back on the couch, shutting his eyes. _Great, the guy I look up to gets drunk with his son! Does insanity run in their family?_ Nevertheless, he sat up a split second later, looking more dignified than he had been coming into the house.

Marise chuckled pleasantly and he, too, rose to his feet. "Would you like some tea, Kouichi?" he inquired politely, inclining his head towards the boy.

"U-uh-"

"Yeah, tea would be great, Dad," Hideki suddenly interrupted, his dark orbs piercing straight through Kouichi.

Nodding, Marise walked off, leaving the other two alone, on opposite couches, one glaring, the other gazing at the first, positively confused.

As soon as his father was out of hearing distance, Hideki used the opportunity to hiss at Kouichi, "You little pervert, what were you thinking when I said you could do practically anything in the house?" His eyes glittered with rage as he sat on the edge of his seat, ready to lunge out and strangle Kouichi the first chance he got.

Kouichi noticed this, seeing Hideki's hands clenched and resting lightly on his knees. _Pervert?_ the boy wondered, aloud claiming, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

The young man made no move. "Oh really?"

"How am I a pervert if I was thinking about videogames?" Kouichi scowled, resisting the urge to scream worse at Hideki.

_Darn it_. Stripped of his only chance to vent out his frustration, Hideki lay out fully on the couch and gazed up at the ceiling. "Say, twerp, you like my sister, right?"

Startled by the straightforwardness of the question, all Kouichi could manage was a dull, "Uh...?"

"Never mind that. We'll get to that later, since you're too stupid for the topic at the moment. So Kanaye has a wristband with a black jewel, huh?" Hideki asked instead.

Now looking solemn, Kouichi nodded. Hideki caught this out of the corner of his eye and then asked, "Same as the one on the sword?"

Again, a solemn nod. "I'm more than positive," Kouichi added, noting the sly grin on Hideki's lips that didn't seem to usually bode well for him. He remembered it often when Marise had forced him to train with Hideki on Saturdays.

The smile quickly changed into a sheepish grin, much to Kouichi's relief. Chuckling, Hideki muttered, "Nice, twerp. You're faring well in this life. You know Lowemon's been bugging me for a while on how to get back to you. Especially since Duskmon's...unfortunate absence, he hasn't wanted to bother you. So he's bothering me." Hideki turned his head at the sight of Kouichi lowering his head in guilt. "H-hey, I'm not complaining!" he added quickly.

There was a long silence. Finally Kouichi spoke up. "N-no...I...uh, never mind," mumbled the boy, managing an even look as he looked up once more. "I'm sorry about Rai."

"It isn't your fault." Hideki reverted his gaze to the ceiling. "A kid like you can't be held responsible for something like feelings."

Kouichi didn't want to rest his case. "Yes," he argued, "but if I hadn't given Kako the book-"

Mercilessly, Kouichi was interrupted, "She would have known anyway. I'm kind of glad you did. It's nice to have a family, even if it's still shattered. You agree, don't you?" There was a gentle smile on Hideki's face, one that Kouichi never imagined to see, especially at a time like this. "Hey, you wanted Kako to be happy. That brings us back to our first question: _Do you love my sister?_" There was a cold and sharp tone to the question as it left Hideki's lips and the smile faded within seconds.

Time was taken to answer the question. The seconds ticked by faster than any other moment in Kouichi's life. "Love...?" he repeated softly. "I don't know. I don't think you can really _ever_ answer that question, can you? Love can be used so interchangeably, that it's meaning has warped a lot. So it depends on the meaning, doesn't it...?" He looked at Hideki and awaited an answer.

"Not what I was looking for..." said Hideki slowly, "but you're right." Bitterly laughing at the pain that stung his heart, and later his eyes, Hideki added, "Doesn't mean you can do whatever with me gone."

_I'd never dream of it_, Kouichi thought with a small, weak smile, though he said nothing aloud. He didn't have a chance to, because an elderly woman stepped forward, carrying a tray with a teakettle and four cups, upside down on the tray. She gently lowered all this onto the table and gave a small little bow. "So, _Master_ Hideki, I see you've decided to take a nap?" she chuckled, a sarcastic tone to her voice.

Startled, Kouichi looked up at her. She must have noticed his confusion, because she inclined her head in his direction. "Youko Aoki. I presume you're the 'twerp' Hideki often complains about?" she inquired. There was a kind twinkle to her eyes, and Kouichi couldn't do anything but blush and nod politely in response to the more-fact-than-rumors that created his poorly established reputation.

He said nothing the entire time, because Youko refused to let him talk when he opened his mouth. "Ah-" she said, quickly raising a hand to silence him. "No need, Kouichi. Marise and Kako should be here soon." An exasperated sigh escaped her. "And it just occurs to me now that she hates dresses..."

Hideki nearly choked as he rolled off the couch, sputtering, "D-Dress?" in disbelief. By that time, Youko was halfway up the stairs.

Mystified by the woman's presence, Kouichi ignored Hideki's incoherent ramblings and shut his eyes. In the very back of his mind, he felt a warm feeling grow in him once more, calling him into an unconscious state. Colors flashed before his closed eyes, ensnaring his senses. Just as he was pulled deeper, the image of a black jewel with silver backing flashed before him.

Meanwhile, in the world of the conscious, someone was calling out his name. Finally giving up on hope of being civil, Hideki snapped, "TWERP!"

Startled, Kouichi's eyes opened and the image left, revealing in it's place a red faced Kako in a pure white dress that seemed almost old fashioned, the bottom frilly, ribbons and laces flying everywhere. There were a pair of white gloves to match. "Uh...? She was serious...?" Kouichi suddenly mumbled dumbly, unable to fully understand what was happening.

"Twerp, this is my sister Kako, whom I'm _sure_ you know well. She is in _a dress_." Hideki emphasized the last word with a great big gesture that meant absolutely nothing.

When it finally sank in, Kouichi blinked twice, and before the words could be stopped, he found himself saying, "She looks beautiful," in an appraising manner.

Hideki's jaw dropped, but Marise just laughed and clapped, pushing up his glasses, which he had just recently donned. Then nodding solemnly, the man murmured, "I agree as well. Definitely a true girl, aren't you, Kako?"

"This is ridiculous," Kako muttered, ignoring the even more crimson shade that had crept up her face. She took a seat on the same couch as Kouichi, but made it her top priority to put as much space between them as possible.

Marise took a seat beside his son, who had fallen off the couch again and managed to (with great difficulty) sit on the couch as a normal person, all the while sputtering in disbelief. "Now, now...shall we get to more important matters?" the man asked gently, taking a cup and pouring tea into it. "I am sure you are aware that the days that approach are shadowed and limited. You have a week. Sort everything out by them." All the while he said this, there was a truly serious look on his face. He paused to take a sip of tea, then asked, "So...when can I expect your first date?"

Cursing loudly, Hideki rose to his feet and pointed accusingly at his father, who remained perfectly calm and as serious as ever while Kouichi and Kako were twitching, the first with anxiety and the second with anger. "You _didn't_ call them to talk about _dating_, Dad! THIS IS ABOUT THE WORLD, NOT THEIR SOCIAL LIVES!" he screamed, waving his hand around wildly, but still pointing in the general vicinity of his father.

Letting out an impatient sigh, Marise waved dismissively towards his son, placing his teacup down gently. "Yes, yes...but I can't have them _dating_ in the middle of this!" he replied. He smiled gently towards Kouichi and Kako. "I was joking, I'll have you know. But you really ought to resolve this quickly, and I mean _everything_. The dates, Lowemon, Shinya and Takuya, Kouji..._everything_." A serious look once more appeared on his face.

Kouichi nodded in understanding and rose to his feet. "Um...is that the entire purpose of this, sir?" he asked hesitantly.

"Actually, yes. I just wanted to make Kako completely uncomfortable!" Marise announced, beaming once more.

_The fruit really _doesn't_ fall far from the tree_, Kouichi thought, laughing nervously. "Um...then..."

Marise nodded and murmured, "You're free to go, of course."

"Oh, okay..."

"Unless Kako has something to say...?"

Furiously, Kako stood up and screamed, "YES I DO! YOU AREN'T TELLING ANYONE!" She would have continued, scaring everyone past the point they had already been scared to (even Marise), but the doorbell rang. She paused in the middle of the first word of the sentence she had just started and, as if reconsidering, Kako walked towards the door instead.

Kouichi followed closely behind, saying his quick good-byes to Marise and Hideki. At the doorway, he paused behind Kako and murmured, "You really _do_ look nice, you know."

Blushing and turning around to face him (although she was really looking at the floor), Kako said nothing, and instead aimed to open the door with her left hand. Kouichi stopped her hand with his right, unsure as to what he was doing, even to himself. He looked troubled. "Listen, Kako...I-" he started, but never finished as he found himself leaning towards her.

Jumping in fright, Kako accidentally yanked the door open and looked away as her face flushed a bright shade of red. Startled himself, Kouichi stood up straighter than any soldier in the army and looked towards the doorway. A nervous feeling washed over him as he saw who it was. "U-uh...M-Ms. Kawai...so...nice to see you today!" he blurted, edging out the door. Waving quickly, he yelled, "I'll see you tomo-I mean Monday!" and dashed off madly, breathing hard and hoping it was all just one bad dream.

Nauseated from the close encounter, Kako slunk down against a nearby wall, kicking the door shut after Rai walked in. "Um, hi, Rai...if you're looking for Dad or Hideki...well, they're both there..." She pointed towards the living room. "Knock yourself out..."

Puzzled, Rai walked past Kako, her eyes glued curiously onto the girl until she turned the corner. The sight that met her eyes caused her to swear an oath aloud. "What the hell...?"

Very innocently, Hideki hid the bottle behind him and cringed as it crashed to the floor loudly. Instead of doing as his son had, Marise calmly slipped the bottle into his sleeve and stood up, making for the stairs. This left a panicking Hideki looking for a place to hide from Rai's wide-eyed gaze. Finally giving up his search, Hideki dropped his hands to his side and gazed down at the ground in shame.

"Um...Rai...h-hey..." he mumbled, feeling pains all too familiar run through him once more. Nevertheless, he looked up. "Would you like to take a seat?"

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"That...is what I call insane," Takuya breathed, lying back on the couch and shutting his eyes.

Kouji nodded silently, his eyes glued to the TV. A hand reached out absentmindedly, taping the table until it found the bowl of popcorn from which it grabbed a handful to feed the mouth of the bandana boy. As the blond man in the show let out a blood-curling scream, Kouji snorted.

Hearing this, Takuya opened one eye. "What?" he inquired.

"It's so fake."

"Ya _think_?"

_Point taken_, Kouji thought, shaking his head, mainly to clear it of the memories that seemed to flood through him without warning. "Hey, how's Shinya?" he asked, hoping to distract himself.

A dangerous silence followed the question, and Kouji began to wonder if he'd done something wrong. A heavy sigh and Takuya answered, "Okay. But he..."

The motion to once more goggled head of Takuya was enough to tell Kouji what had happened, although not in great detail. He decided the details didn't matter and went back to watch the rest of the cut-scene.

This time, Takuya snorted.

Hiding an amused smile as the cut-scene ended with the main character falling unconscious, Kouji reluctantly tore his gaze away from the TV and looked at Takuya, the smile showing clearly now. "What?" he asked.

"It's so fake," Takuya repeated Kouji's earlier comment.

An annoyed sigh escaped Kouji. He grabbed a handful of popcorn and threw it at the goggle boy. "Ya _think_?" he snapped, grabbing a hold of the controller just as Takuya did.

The two exchanged dangerous grins, neither moving.

"At times like these," Takuya suddenly said, snatching the controller out of Kouji's hand in a smooth motion, "it's best to have a third party."

Not upset at all that he didn't get the controller, Kouji nodded, stood up and yawned, stretching his hands in the air to go with his act. He pretended to rub his eyes and mumbled, "I'm going to...check on some stuff."

"Stuff?" Takuya kept staring at the TV.

_Keep that up and I'll be here with you always_, Kouji thought, chuckling silently to himself. "Yeah. Tomoki supposedly sent me some files to read over. Homework, you know. I guess Kouichi's too intimidating," he commented thoughtfully, only telling a partial lie. He dashed off to his room, shutting the door behind him and kicking his backpack in front of the door as an indicator in case Takuya decided to snoop; he needn't have worried, because Takuya was preoccupied as it was.

Throughout the days, Kouji's room had become increasingly neat and messy at the same time. A majority of the room was clean, save the desk, where the growing mess came in. If his room was a calm, beautiful sea, his desk was a pirate ship filled with rotting men, and his laptop was the obvious captain, standing alone in a space cleared just for it.

Kouji rubbed his hands together and pulled up a chair in front of his desk. All thoughts of anything outside the room, of anything outside the laptop, were banished. _Please, tell me I got _something, he hoped, biting his lower lip anxiously. As the screen appeared, slowly clearing from the blank, black screen it had been previously, Kouji found the message he had been waiting for and nearly cried out in joy. _One new e-mail_.

But it didn't end there. His lips felt dry, though he licked them again and again as he quickly replied to the message. Thank you, grateful, reply soon, only some of the words he used. The reply was sent and he made it his first priority to discover what had been attached. It only took mere seconds to download, and what he discovered on the word document was just as he expected.

Smiling, satisfied, Kouji rose to his feet and walked out of his room, shutting the door behind him. Takuya must have noticed the overly-happy aura around him because he asked, "You sane?"

Kouji's smile only widened. "What do you think?" the bandana boy returned, taking a seat beside his friend and snatching the controller away. Everything was going just how he planned...

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Kako rose to her feet, suddenly feeling extremely giddy, almost drunk. Girlish fantasies of skipping through fields of daisies entered her mind as she giggled and skipped around to avoid the living room and reach the stairs, which she climbed only _after_ gathering and scolding herself for losing her mind. Instead, a childish feeling overcame her as she saw her father standing and looking down over the balustrade with sorrowful eyes (the beer bottle was open and he was holding it in one hand, though he made no move to drink it). She joined him on the very top step, grabbing a hold of a nearby baluster and hugging it close as Hideki and Rai's voices carried to them.

Their faces were nearly visible as well. Hideki was attempting to clean up the mess he had made by dropping the beer bottle, but failed miserably and was swearing almost every second as he cut his fingers on the broken glass. Finally giving up, Hideki cursed loudly and wrapped his fingers in his shirt, not daring to look up at Rai, but furiously at the ground.

"W-well, I see you're doing well," Rai muttered, flustered as she looked around the house in quick sweeps, as if desperately trying to find a way out.

Hideki looked frustrated, and couldn't come up with a conclusion of what to do. "Uh, yeah...doing well," he muttered, suddenly taking a sarcastic edge. "Yeah, that's why I'm drinking, because I'm doing well." Fury burned in his eyes as he looked up.

Silence was exchanged for silence in this battle of glares. Hideki, with much perseverance and pushing away his feelings, finally won. His glare and anger only intensified as Rai looked away as if she had been slapped in the face. Eyes narrowed, and conclusions were thrown away by the thousands, revealing the very assumption he declared aloud, "You're here to make fun of me, aren't you?"

She took a step back out of surprise. Warily, she narrowed her eyes on him and murmured, "You're drunk...aren't you?"

"Don't be silly!" Hideki spat. "How could I be drunk? Kako would have killed me if she found out I drove here _drunk_. I'm not drunk, Rai. I'm as sober as Kouichi." He took a step forward, a bold move he hardly ever made in situations like this with Rai, but the tables were turning.

Rai looked almost frightened. She stumbled back until she fell onto the couch, where she sat and shut her eyes, murmuring quietly to herself.

Hideki took a seat in the couch opposite, wearing the same, menacing glare.

Slowly, taking in a deep breath of air and slowly letting out several times, Rai managed to speak again. "I...I just came here to say, that if it's going to end, we might as well be on good terms," she tried to say, stuttering several times, seeming to slow her speech so it would make some sense to herself.

It was after a few more seconds that he bothered to address her again. "Well you've said it," he returned coldly.

There was a surprising change of events as Rai stood up and yelled, "Okay Mr. Insensitive! I'm _trying_ to say sorry, but if you aren't going to _do_ anything, then _thank you_ for wasting _minutes_ of my life that could have been spent doing something more _useful!_" Tears were on the brink of falling out, blurring her vision as she hastily made her way to the door.

Again, it seemed as if Hideki couldn't make up his mind. Indecisiveness quickly left him as he called after Rai, "Wait..." sounding as if he just realized he had committed some horrible atrocity.

At the top of the stairs, Marise shook his head, bringing the bottle to his lips. He tilted his head back and took a mouthful of the stuff, all the while looking perfectly calm. When at last he had swallowed, he looked into the space in front of him and leaned on the wooden railing. "If ever you decide to date Kouichi," he murmured, "I can assume you two will be far more random than those two. At any rate, Kako, never take such silly fights to heart. He means well," he said, voice no louder than a whisper, and yet as quiet as a waterfall.

Startled, Kako turned her head to ask her father what he meant, but Marise had already left for his bedroom. His words sank into effect. _Dating_... _Me? Date Kouichi? We're way too self-conscious to even kiss_, she thought, shivering at the thought of a date. _Or are we already dating? I'm not sure_. _We probably are_. _Maybe that's what the whole thing at the door was about...! He must hate me! Nooo! I'm such a dolt_...

Shaking her head to clear the tsunami of thoughts, Kako rose to her feet and descended the stairs in an instant. Marise was right that they had to sort out their relationship before everything began, meaning the supposed 'final battle.' And yet, it seemed that would only get in the way.

Kako made her way to the door of the backyard, pressing her hands against the glass door. Outside, a mess of flower petals scattered themselves further with the wind to guide them. It seemed with each passing second, she, too, could see the storm approaching.

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"He fell asleep a while ago," Takuya murmured, shutting his eyes and enjoying the warmth of the sun as it lit the side of his face.

Izumi nodded quietly, eyes warily glued onto the comatose form of Kouji.

Almost in a tired voice, Takuya continued, "He doesn't seem to be doing anything wrong. I can't think of a thing in the world he could be doing. How was your recital?" He sounded gloomy, and looked it as equally.

Her eyes shifted to look at Takuya. "Wonderful, thanks." Quietly, Izumi moved forward to grab a hold of one of Takuya's arms that restlessly tapped on his knee. "Shinya's fine. He's with Tomoki and Junpei. They'll take care of him, Takuya. I promise," she told him. But even her bottom lip quivered to betray her.

Helplessly, Takuya cried, "I know, Izumi...but...he's right..." His eyes were downcast as he lowered his head. "I...I didn't help him. I wasn't there for him when he needed me the most..." Broken cries choked through. "Izumi, I...I want to go see him."

She withdrew her hands, only after squeezing his reassuringly. "Go," she finally said, smiling in his direction.

Takuya looked up in surprise, the tears immediately stopping.

Izumi giggled at the sight. "Go, Takuya. I'm sure Kouji will understand when I explain. I'll be _fine_. Hurry up, before I _chase_ you out," she told him, mocking a menacing growl.

Snickering, Takuya remarked, "A bit deeper and you'll have it."

She playfully hit his arm. "Oh shut up!" Izumi scowled.

The two burst out into laughter until Takuya rose to his feet, a small smile on his face. "Thank you," he whispered, more like mouthed, before he ran out the door.

So Izumi was left alone, staring thoughtfully at Kouji. Something didn't feel right. At the pit of her stomach, a void was threatening to swallow her whole. Worried, she walked to the door and cracked it open to find the goggle boy immobile at the steps. "T-Takuya...?" she said in surprise.

"I...can't," Takuya mumbled, slouching his shoulders and collapsing onto the step, resting his elbows on his leg as he cradled his head in his hands and moaned aloud, "I can't...!" He let out a frustrated cry as he stood up and screamed, "I can't!"

Izumi watched in silence as Takuya continued, "I'd just hurt him more. He _hates_ me Izumi. I can't change a thing!" There was a bitter note in his voice. "I don't have a choice. I have to give up on Shinya. Maybe not as a brother, but for the moment...while he's like this, I have no choice. If this is the only way I can keep him safe, I'll leave him alone. I...do you think I'm right...?" He turned his head to look over his shoulder, a pitiful sight to Izumi.

Tentatively, Izumi walked down the steps and into his arms as Takuya fully turned around. "He'll understand," she whispered to him, tightening her grip around him as he tightened his around her. "Shinya's strong. He takes after his knucklehead brother."

They should have found comfort in those words, yet no laughs were emitted. Only tears and the awareness that they were being watched by passersby existed. And one wasn't even a passerby at all.

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A/N-

I did it! Quicker review (I'm getting my bearings)! .:also has vague idea of how story should end end. Yes, 'end end':. Might take time for next update.

THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS! (I'm happy to hear from you guys)-

**Winter's Light, GemmaniGirl, Lady Hikari-Yami  
**  
Review or PM or Flame.


	33. Puzzle Pieces

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Puzzle Pieces

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At the park, Junpei related a tale to Shinya and Tomoki of some childhood tale neither were interested enough to listen to. Both younger boys were preoccupied, Shinya with his own predicament and Tomoki with Shinya. And so Junpei, unsure of what to do, attempted to liven the air.

"...should have seen the look on my mother's face!" Junpei laughed, slapping his hand on Tomoki's back.

Startled, the boy made a small 'oof' sound and stumbled forward. He was quick to catch himself and send a smile and a nod to Junpei that made it seem as if he was listening.

Shinya didn't care to the least if Junpei was insulted by his lack of interest. That was the least of his worries.

_Fool, no one cares about you_, a voice repeated insistently into his head. It kept repeating this, and by now, Shinya could confirm what had happened to him that day when Kanaye had knocked him out.

Furiously, he glared daggers at the innocent ground. _Who _are_ you?_ He wanted to know. He wanted to be rid of the voice. He would rather _Duskmon_ snooping around in his head. But Duskmon was gone, and he could not be rid of this annoying, pestering, idiotic, _stupid_, _obtrusive_, _gosh-darn boisterous presence_. _Go away_! Shinya felt tears spill into his eyes. Pretending something managed to get into his eye, he lifted an arm up to block the tears and wipe them away.

Junpei had finished his story by then. He turned to the youngest boy with a broad smile. "So, Shinya, how's Takuya?" he asked conversationally.

"I..." Shinya's lower lip quivered as his arm dropped and his head lowered. "I _hate_ Takuya," he found himself whispering in a barely audible voice. It was sharp, and almost like a hiss. No matter how quiet, Junpei and Tomoki had heard; Shinya could tell by their shocked expressions.

Often, Shinya had wondered how it must feel like to ride the wind, as a bird, or even more interestingly, as a butterfly. With wings thinner than paper, they managed to adjust to the strong winds and, gracefully, soar and show their unrestrained beauty. Shinya observed a nearby butterfly, feeling tears well up in his eyes once more.

Silent sobs racked through his body, and he choked them back, feeling an overwhelming happiness conflict with his despair. For a moment, it won, and all was normal. For that moment, Shinya would have traded anything to ensure it would last. The next second later, he found himself marching away from Tomoki and Junpei, declaring, "I need to clear my thoughts." Surprisingly, they respected his wishes.

With great worry, Tomoki watched Shinya break into a run when he thought that he wasn't being watched. It hardly seemed fair to Tomoki that the boy was being forced to grow up, but then again, he recalled his own adventures in the Digital World. They had all grown up considerably since then.

"He hates Takuya...?" Junpei scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Well, well...sibling rivalry took another step," he mused.

Tomoki shook his head. "Not rivalry. Anger," he corrected. "Rivalry would lead to annoyance." He said this almost softly, recalling Yutaka. Memories of Yutaka brought the book to mind. _Bokomon's_ book. It had arrived safely at Hawaii for Ichiro's inspection. For days, Tomoki and Ichiro had been communicating on a constant topic of the content of the book. While Tomoki had thought only the last page to be important, it turned out that several other pages, scattered throughout the book, were just as crucial to know about.

Laughing bitterly, Junpei sighed, "You would know." He looked longingly up at the cloudless sky. "How long will we have to deal with this, Tomoki? I'm afraid to see what will happen if more kids like Shinya have to go through this," he confessed, shutting his eyes and halting beside a bench.

The two boys took a seat and lapsed into silence. There was a chill despite the bright sun. "Any news about the Book?" Junpei asked, turning his head to Tomoki and opening his eyes in one motion.

Understanding perfectly well what Junpei meant, Tomoki replied, "Ichiro's still working on translations. He's too afraid to send it online or any wireless means; he's afraid someone might intercept them. Mail's got the same problem, and so does the phone, but we can't really meet in person. He's actually more paranoid than I originally thought. You'd think _Kouichi_ was suspicious of everyone, but he's not only suspicious but also _superstitious_. It's almost ridiculous. We have to wait until a new moon day to talk over the phone, apparently. I don't have the slightest idea _why_, and I don't think he knows why either." Tomoki paused in his rant and turned to Junpei. "Sorry about that," he added, noticing the slightly amused and surprised look on Junpei's face.

But it melted into a smile. "It's alright. Truth be told, I'm more worried about Shinya. I keep thinking there's something we can do to make him think otherwise," he admitted.

"Me too."

"Should we-"

"No..."

"Yeah..."

"But then again-"

"Still..."

"Right..."

The two boys exchanged reluctant glances. Their mind made up, they rose to their feet and Tomoki murmured, "Kumamon."

"Got Blitzmon tracking him," came the reply as the short digimon appeared beside Tomoki.

Without acknowledging the digimon, Tomoki nodded slightly and ran forward as Kumamon began giving him and Junpei instructions on where to find Shinya.

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"I _hate_ you," Rai snapped, scowling as Hideki smiled and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a warm embrace she couldn't help but melt into. _It's great there's no Duskmon here to laugh at me, but now I feel bad for thinking these thoughts_, she thought, shutting her eyes.

Breathing softly into her ear, Hideki murmured, "Told you I always win."

The smugness in his voice didn't go unnoticed by Rai. "That's what_ you_ think," she retorted, pushing him away and glaring at him. The entire thing was so convincing she swear she saw him frown. Her cover gave way, and she could never be entirely sure he was frowning, because the second she burst out laughing, he began growling in annoyance.

It was at that moment that an almost dazed Kako entered the kitchen, staring blankly ahead of her. She snapped out of her trance-like state when she saw Hideki and Rai in the position they were in. Too tired to care, however, she turned away and looked instead at the fridge. "I'm going to...make something to eat...ignore me," the girl mumbled, opening the fridge and pulling out a few items.

Youko entered as Kako said this, a small frown on her face. "Kako, you look tired. Maybe you should rest...?" she suggested, grabbing a hold of the girl's hand as she pulled out some chocolate powder.

Indignantly, Kako shook her head and murmured, "I'm fine...I think out of all of us _you_ need the most rest..." She gently removed her hand from Youko's and continued getting out the items she needed.

The elderly lady let out an exasperated sigh before shaking her head and shooting a look at Hideki and Rai, who had frozen, afraid of Kako at the moment. "You two better get a room," she warned, before turning around and walking out of the kitchen.

Hideki sheepishly let go of Rai, who pushed him away and walked up to Kako, smiling down at the girl. "Wearing a dress willingly...? Was it for Kouichi?" Rai asked teasingly, turning Kako around forcefully, but gently, to get a better look at her.

Gazing down at the floor, Kako realized she had gotten herself in quite a silly predicament. "For Kouichi...?" she repeated. "For Kouichi? I don't know," she said. The confusion began showing on her face, and seconds later, Hideki groaned.

"Rai, stop," he begged. "She's overthinking the problem again. I've noticed this for weeks. Especially now, I bet she'll start connecting _everything_ she does with Kouichi. It's ridiculous. I don't see how she makes these connections..." Hideki walked up to his sister and ruffled her hair. "You. Go sleep. Rai and I can make you something to eat if you'd like," he offered.

"You two would just make out," Kako told him pointedly. "Go out to a restaurant, stupid." She brushed his hand away and turned back to her concoction of chocolate powder, flour, salt and baking powder.

Rai clapped her hands together and looked expectantly at Hideki.

Reluctantly, Hideki tore his gaze away from Kako. "If you're sure..." he murmured, grabbing a hold of Rai's arm and leading her outside.

As soon as they left, Kako sank down on the kitchen floor and buried her head into the folds of her dress. Her head hurt just thinking about it. _Am I _really _doing this all for Kouichi? Maybe it's just an unconscious motion_. _What if this is all for him? How can I be sure? For all I know, I could be_...

She let out a frustrated cry and buried her head deeper, pulling her knees in closer. There was no reassurance of someone else to hold her. There was only the uncertainty of the future. Could she be sure she really wanted to adjust her life for Kouichi? Was she unconsciously adjusting her life for him?

_Please, someone, just give me an answer_, Kako prayed, forcing herself up and concentrating on her food. _But for now, just let me bake some decent brownies_.

-------------------------------------

"She looked so adorable," Rai squealed, clapping her hands in delight. "But...she looked so sad..." The delight in her eyes disappeared.

Rolling his eyes, her companion muttered, "Don't let it get to you. She's just overthinking matters. So, which restaurant?" Hideki looked to Rai for a suggestion.

There was a mischievous gleam evident in Rai's eyes. "Don't feel bad about it," she said slowly, doing her best to hide her laughter, "but I only meant to go to your house to apologize. Things got a bit overemotional, and it seems I'm late for a _very important date_." She carefully placed her emphasis on the last word.

Hideki's face fell. "Date...?" he repeated, trying his best not to sound jealous or suspicious.

He failed miserably. Noticing this, Rai nodded solemnly, deciding to play the prank a little further. "A date. Oh, what will I do? He probably hates me now..." A dramatic sigh followed and Rai looked away from Hideki, doing her best to swallow back any laughter.

Narrowing his eyes, Hideki murmured, "That so...?"

Immediately, Rai turned around and clasped his hands in her own. "So, would you like to accompany me?" she asked, eyes dancing wildly with laughter.

Again, Hideki rolled his eyes. Pushing her hands away, he muttered, "The worst joke ever."

"You were jealous, _admit_ it!" Rai laughed, grabbing on of his free hands and dragging him out the gate. "It's not too far, we don't need the car," she added, seeing him take out his keys.

Hideki put away his keys and smiled softly. "Right," he said bluntly, tightening his grip on her hand as she did the same.

The walk was a quiet one, but they could almost _feel_ each other's thoughts. Their hands were at war to see who could squeeze the tightest. Just as they approached the restaurant, though, Hideki let out a triumphant laugh that declared himself the winner. Rai stepped on his foot in response and they entered the restaurant with Hideki paling in pain.

"Over here, nitwits," a cold voice called out.

Surprised, Hideki whirled his head in the direction of the speaker. Immediately, he let go of Rai's hand, pushed her behind him and snarled, "You..."

"Me," Kanaye mimicking mockingly, making a face. He waved a hand towards Rai. "Take a seat, would you? And if that bull dog of a boyfriend of yours wants to, he can too." The expression he held changed quickly while he said this, giving Kanaye a tired look.

Rai rolled her eyes and pushed Hideki into the seat before she slid in. Amazingly, Kanaye had chosen the table by the window, and the only closest to the door. She had no idea what he wanted, but as long as she wasn't involved (or Hideki, for that matter), Rai decided it didn't matter.

"You mean you were going to meet _this_?" Hideki asked. Kanaye noted the disgust plain in his voice but said nothing.

In an attempt to be the peacemaker, Rai grabbed Hideki's hand and squeezed it tightly. When he continued to glare at Kanaye, she kicked his shin and shot him a glare. "Now, how's progress?" she asked Kanaye, ignoring the scowl Hideki wore.

"He found a computer. So far so good, but it's taking longer than expected with those _bodyguards_ of his." When he thought Rai wasn't looking, Kanaye stuck his tongue out at Hideki. Of course he was Devimon's shadow, but he was still a boy, and he was only fourteen.

"I see." Rai fell into a thoughtful silence, tapping the table with a finger. "I suppose...well, they haven't been sticking to their posts all that well," she admitted.

The boy rose an eyebrow. "Their posts?"

Realization hit Hideki and he turned to Rai with his mouth hanging open. In a shocked whisper, he demanded, "You're _betraying_ us?"

All Rai could do was roll her eyes again. Stifling any sound that might give away her amusement, she hit his arm. "Hideki, it's the other way around," she told him.

Someone cleared their throat. "_I_ would actually be the one doing the betraying," Kanaye cut in. He felt immensely awkward with both Hideki and Rai in the room, but he figured it was no worse than Kako and Kouichi.

Rai just smiled. "Maybe you're being betrayed. Who knows? Does it really matter? At his current rate, how long will it be until Shinya finishes the codes for the gate?"

"Another week or so."

"That's fine with m-" Rai let out a sound of protest when her mouth was clapped shut by Hideki.

_Curiosity killed the cat_, Hideki reminded himself. _I just won't let it kill me_. "Shinya's the one who's going to open the gate here? The gate Lucemon'll probably use to destroy the entire world?" he inquired Kanaye.

Startled, all the boy could do was nod.

"You're betraying Lucemon?"

A nod.

"And your wristband...the jewel-" His gaze intensified and he continued interrogating Kanaye mercilessly. "That jewel's how you get your sword out of thin air, right? Like the D-Tectors, only smaller."

Again, he received a nod, but Kanaye offered, "Exactly. And I see my showing the jewel to Kouichi did it's job, however thoroughly..."

"You're working for Lucemon." More a statement than a question, but Kanaye nodded. "Lucemon's in Hawaii?"

"Japan," Kanaye corrected. He sounded tired and wasn't afraid to hide it. "If you're done..." The boy stood up.

Hideki stood up as well. "I'm just getting started!" he cried, almost whining when Kanaye took a step away from his seat.

"Well-" Kanaye stopped, eyes widening as he saw two figures at the door. Two more walked by the window and stopped, gazing at him with great shock. And there was one last figure who noticed the other four and stopped to gaze at them curiously.

Rai practically fell out of her seat as she and Hideki stood up and attempted to get away from their seats. However they were too late, and in walked five _very_ familiar people.

Kanaye swallowed, trying to moisten his throat, which had become dry. _Naoko...Fujitaka...and Izumi _and_ Takuya? Then there's Shinya...it makes sense. He was just at the arcade, and that's only two stores down_, he mused to himself, becoming increasingly nervous. He managed to keep collected as he cleared his throat.

"Well, we have a party here," Hideki muttered, looking away from him. Rai agreed with a miserable nod.

"You're all a bunch of idiots," Shinya declared in a hiss. "Sit down."

Everyone turned to the little boy in surprise.

"SIT," he yelled, storming over to the table and slamming his hand down on the surface.

And they were all too startled NOT to comply.

-------------------------------------

Marise paced back and forth in his room, occasionally taking a swig from the beer bottle. He couldn't help it. The sudden rush had been found again, the impatience that he thought he had long forgotten. Everything was back.

It was exhilarating.

"Marise, you'll wear a hole in the carpet! And stop drinking. Taishi is here," Youko scolded him, opening the door and frowning disapprovingly at him.

Smiling merrily, Marise placed the bottle down on his desk and nodded. "Show him in. And thank you, Youko," he said. Happily humming to himself, Marise made his way to the window.

Yes, it was all back. _Unfortunately_, one might add, if they knew him well, and Youko did.

Casting one last glance at him, Youko shook her head and shut the door to go down to fetch Taishi.

_Yes, yes...I really ought to find more of those dresses. Harumi would have loved to see Kako in them. I'll work on that after Taishi leaves. We all need a break, though I hardly call finding dresses a break. It _is_ better than working all day in a bookstore. Perhaps I should have given Kouichi the key; he may have wanted to practice today. Ah, well. The past is the past, and we should learn from it_, Marise thought to himself. Indeed, the impatience and the gift of gab were returning.

Taishi walked in and slammed the door behind him. Chuckling, Marise pulled up a chair for himself and sat down, motioning the older man into the chair that had been set in front of the desk, while he pulled his chair behind the desk. "Now, now...do keep in mind that you really ought to respect my furniture," Marise reprimanded his father-in-law good-naturedly.

It was still a jibe and to Marise's expense. Taishi stood firmly rooted in front of the door, glaring coldly at Marise. "You're a bit too happy today, Marise," he simply replied.

"Not in the least!" Marise chortled. He motioned to the chair again. "Do sit."

"I prefer standing."

A dark look crept up Marise's face. The somewhat jubilant atmosphere disappeared. Standing up, Marise murmured, "I see. Very well, what is it you want?" His hands laced together behind his back and he turned around to look out the window, out into the yard, where he found Kako sitting by a rose bush.

Had he turned around he would have seen the triumphant look on Taishi's face. "Kako's future. Hideki is old enough to take care of himself, but once this is over, you will be gone, I will be gone, Hideki will be gone, and there are very few choices for Kako," he murmured icily.

Marise was amused as he looked over his shoulder. "You? Gone? How is this?"

Angrily, Taishi snapped, "We both know I don't have much time." The younger man nodded. "So what will be of Kako?" It didn't take a genius to know Taishi was getting impatient.

"She can choose herself," Marise said softly, placing a hand on the glass of the window and smiling down on the garden. "She has a stronger will than that of Harumi and myself combined. I'm sure you could throw in Hideki in the case of stubbornness. She has all rights to this house should something happen to Hideki, and all rights to Harumi's things, too. She'll be perfectly well off." Although he sounded confident, Marise heard a small voice in the back of his head say meekly, _I hope_.

Taishi voiced his doubt as well as Marise's. His voice rose and he said, "And if something were to happen to her, despite all this money and wealth?"

"There's Youko."

"She won't always be there."

"Ichiro and Ryuusei are just in Hawaii."

"Bah, they have their own lives."

"If Rai ever makes it out of this-"

"We won't be including her."

"Gen wouldn't dare h-"

"I don't care about that fool."

Marise fell into a furious silence. _Fool?_ The word echoed in his head. His voice turned cold as he reminded Taishi, "I do believe it was _you_ who called me a fool for calling _Gen_ a fool, isn't that right? And yet you turn on him now?" A bitter laugh forced its way out of his throat. "Fool, you just don't want Kako with me while she can be. But keep in mind, Taishi...you and I _both_ know who has every idea of the possibilities the future might hold," hissed Marise, turning the upper half of his body to glare at Taishi.

The uncomfortable silence remained between them. During this time, Marise looked back out the window to find Kako had gone back inside, and the sun had been hidden by clouds. Taishi, on the other hand, took a seat in the chair and turned around a picture frame on the desk.

"She would hate us for this, wouldn't she...?" Marise suddenly asked, drawing the blinds to cover the window.

A wry smile formed on Taishi's face. He allowed a hand to run over the glass of the picture frame in the spot where his daughter stood in the picture, holding Kako and standing beside Marise, behind Hideki. "Of course," he replied. "More than anything." Taishi placed the picture frame back on the desk and admired it from there.

Marise slipped into the chair on the other side of the desk, opposite Taishi. "She should have said something..."

"She told me to stop provoking you."

This struck Marise as odd. "Ah. I always thought I was the provoker," he laughed aloud.

"You _are_," Taishi told him.

"Why thank you." He was about to say more when someone knocked on the door. He sat up curiously and said, "Come in."

Peeking her head through the door, Kako scanned the room. She caught sight of her father and grandfather seated at the desk. "Um..." she mumbled, "Would you...like brownies...?" She seemed to shrink and redden as she asked this.

The two men gazed at her with amused smiles on their faces, but said nothing.

Kako seemed to shrink even more. "Is...that a yes?"

"Of course!" Marise exclaimed, waving her in with a laugh.

_Evil_, was all Kako thought as she came into the room, a plate of brownies in hand. She placed the plate on the table and aimed at running out again, but Marise managed to catch her by grabbing the ribbon on the back of her dress. Merely because she didn't want the dress harmed, Kako stopped in her tracks and winced.

"Stay," Marise insisted, grabbing a brownie and taking a bite. "Now, Taishi-"

"_Refrain_ from talking with your mouth full, would you?" Taishi scowled, taking a brownie himself. He paused as he chewed it, then swallowed and told Kako, "Your mother couldn't cook for her life, you know."

Startled, Kako insisted, "Yeah she could! She'd cook for us all the time!"

"Well...she needed the recipe at hand, which is why she never let you into the kitchen."

"_That_ was why? I thought she was afraid I'd cut myself with a knife or something," Kako muttered. It wasn't hard for her to imagine her mother looking at a recipe while she cooked. In fact, it made more sense than anything. Harumi could never memorize anything, much less remember her own daughter's birthday.

Marise smiled as he watched Taishi relate tales of Harumi that revealed facts that Kako hadn't known about. It was amusing to say the very least, and he realized deciding her future wouldn't be that easy. _Deciding anyone's future is never easy_, Marise reminded himself, unconsciously eating another brownie. His smile softened and he shut his eyes, feeling himself drift off. Of course, Taishi would disapprove, but with Kako there beside him, Marise doubted his father-in-law would notice him taking a small nap...

-------------------------------------

The phone rang. _Telemarketers_, Kouji guessed, ignoring it's insistent ringing. "Go to hell," he muttered instead, continuing to look over the latest picture that had been sent to him.

The ringing eventually stopped, much to his relief. Now able to concentrate without interruption, Kouji compared the recent picture to one of his older ones. The glyphs and writings seemed so similar, but their background was what was different. One on a tree, the other on stone.

"It doesn't even _look_ like stone," Kouji observed, zooming in on the recent picture. "It's like..."

A small beep startled him, and Kouji turned his attention from the pictures to his e-mail. _Another...?_ A grim smile appeared and he opened the new letter. As usual, it was blank, and there was an attachment, but Kouji had become familiar enough to know the sender meant no harm; no viruses were attached.

The attachment was downloaded in mere seconds, and Kouji discovered he had been sent another picture, with a note written down at the bottom.

'_Third point: Shibuya, Japan.  
Two truths, one lie_.'

Again, the prophecy was sketched on something, and Kouji could see that it was in stone. _Three points_, he told himself, _like a triangle_. A pencil was in his hand, and he sketched a triangle lazily on his paper. _The tree is in Hawaii, the stone in Japan, and the third point_...

Ringing distracted him, but he could tell it wasn't the phone. If it were louder, sharper, he could have guessed a wind chime, but there was no wind, and the sound was more faint and dull.

Kouji cursed aloud and turned back to the computer. _Stupid noises_. _That better not be some cat stuck in the house_. He chose to ignore it and looked at the second picture he had received. Not stone, not tree, but it was something, and he couldn't seem to guess. _Sand, cloth, building...?_ Kouji groaned and lay his head down on the table. "What _is_ it?" he yelled.

The ringing seemed to sap his energy, his focus. He was distracted, weak, tired...in _no_ mood to be staring at the computer. Groaning, Kouji reluctantly stood up and collapsed backwards on his bed, allowing his eyes to shut and succumbing to unconsciousness.

From his closet, the ringing died out. Instead, the phone rang again.

And had he been awake, he would have heard a faint beep, signaling he had another e-mail.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi stood in front of the bookstore, nervously gripping the doorknob. Resolved, he shoved it open, walked in, took the key out of the lock, shut the door, then locked it. Of course, he would return Marise's key...when he saw him next. But for the moment, he wanted to practice.

He _needed_ to practice. _Focus_, Kouichi told himself. _I really ought to meditate or something like that again_.

He stole into the back, unlocking the training room and bringing his sword out. It felt heavier than he remembered, after wielding the bokuto for so long, and Kouji felt wistful as memories flew into him at first contact with the sword.

_Focus_, he repeated in his head, imagining an invisible opponent in front of him. They seemed to be waiting for an attack, so Kouichi lunged forward, aiming to thrust. He was parried off and caught off guard, but managed to block just as the enemy brought their sword down on him. That being done, he set out to slice their side.

And so it continued for several minutes. He sparred his invisible partner, imagining every move to be real, even _feeling_ every move. Eventually, he managed to rid the opponent of their blade and the mind simulation ended.

There was clapping. Kouichi looked up, startled. Lowemon cut his clapping and nodded towards Kouichi. Swallowing, the boy inclined his head in return and walked up to the digimon. "You've been gone long," he murmured. It wasn't an accusation, just a statement.

Lowemon just nodded.

"Duskmon's gone."

"I know."

Awkwardly, Kouichi allowed his sword to return into his D-Tector and sat down against the wall. Shutting his eyes, he asked, "What have you been doing?"

"This and that," Lowemon replied, as blunt as the question had been.

"Oh."

"And you?"

"This and that," Kouichi returned, managing a weak smile.

Lowemon smiled as well, his more grim, however. "You really detest me, don't you?" he inquired curiously. "You might even say that it's my fault Duskmon is gone. I can assure you, Kouichi, I had my reasons of distancing. Duskmon needed the time to complete what he wanted before he left, and if I stayed in his way, he would have disappeared before everything was complete. You know I dislike Duskmon, but I wouldn't deny him that right."

The boy looked down. "I don't mean it," he replied earnestly. "I just...felt..."

"Incomplete," they finished at the same time. Kouichi nodded and Lowemon sighed. "Kouichi," the digimon murmured, "Sometimes, we have to feel incomplete, because that's the only way we can finish what we've started. So, will you finish?"

"I...y-yeah..." he stuttered, looking up to meet Lowemon's eyes. "Partners?"

Lowemon rolled his eyes. "So long as you don't treat me like that _thing_," he muttered.

Kouichi regarded the digimon with a sharp look as he stood up. "_Lowemon_," he reprimanded the digimon silently and instead smiled. "Maybe we should return Mr. Saito's keys..."

"Ah, Kouichi, now I must undo all of that _thing's_ influence."

The two burst out into laughter.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Short! Amazing! I'll estimate 2134097 more chapters so I'll finish it under that and feel better about it! My arms hurt because I sleep funny. This chapter is questionable in terms of quality.

Thank You For The REVIEWS- **GemmaniGirl, The Light's Refrain**

Review or PM or Flame.


	34. Last Chance

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Last Chance

-------------------------------------

It had been odd. Shinya had forced them to buy him lunch. He ate and ate until he turned blue, when Takuya told him he should stop eating. But Shinya kept eating, and money flew out of their pockets faster than water.

Needless to say, Izumi and Takuya took the boy home and he threw up.

Nothing was said during that hour. The three couples stared wide-eyed at Shinya, and Kanaye was tapping a finger on the table to show his impatience. But nothing happened until Izumi and the Kanbaras left.

"You will not tell this to a soul," Kanaye hissed, directing his threat to Naoko and Fujitaka.

The two exchanged confused glances. "We understand," Naoko said slowly. Kanaye waited patiently as she continued, "You just ran into them, right? And it was just a whole bunch of threats and whatnot exchanged, right...?"

_Dense_, his head screamed, but Kanaye smiled thinly. "How did you ever guess?" he asked innocently.

After that, Hideki and Rai left, and Kanaye soon after. The last thing he wanted to be caught up in was the lovely night those two had planned. _I'd rather eat a live duck_, he realized, deciding to pay a visit to Marise's bookstore instead. He could catch up on reading. Since his last visit, Kanaye had cut reading off altogether, deciding to spend his time planning his own demise instead.

It had worked for a while, but he soon found his plan to be so simple and foolproof, that the max number of lives to be lost would only be one or two, and that there wasn't much to do but wait for the plan to be put into action. Kimura and the others would be in the Digital World through the gate Shinya would construct with Lucemon on the other end. They would destroy him; he would surrender if need be, right away. He would change sides if possible, and fight the others if they proved an obstacle. He _would_ get his own way, and Lucemon would _not_ win.

_Vulgar pig_, Kanaye thought, slamming the door to his room shut. He could hardly stand the half-year he had spent with the man, and ruling a kingdom seemed a hundredfold worse.

He threw himself on his bed, face down. A breath was drawn, and he felt the chains around him wrap tighter. Kanaye moaned and rolled over, allowing a hand to rest on his stomach and his eyes to slip shut. _If they would just realize...if they would just hurry up_...

It then occurred to him that he was at home, and not at the bookstore. It struck him as odd. So many times, he wanted to get away from the place, and unconsciously, he felt drawn to it. Chuckling to himself, Kanaye rose to his feet and shook his head. _Maybe tomorrow_.

-------------------------------------

Kako sighed in frustration. Monday she had layered herself with jackets galore so as to not get sick from the cold, which she discovered didn't exist. Tuesday she borrowed a jacket from Kouichi so as to not freeze to death when she thought there would be sun. Wednesday she figured the pattern would repeat, and decided to bring a thin jacket in case, but she ended up borrowing Kouichi's jacket again nevertheless. Today she had two jackets in case, and it was sunny.

Cursing the weather and returning her attention to the board, Kako sighed. She could hear the faint taps of Kouji typing and the mutterings from Kouichi as he began to overanalyze the book he was currently reading. Further down the row, Takuya and Izumi were flirting, and Ai was whining to Naoko very loudly in the middle of the room, right beside Kanaye, whom she intended to annoy to death. Fujitaka was glaring at Kouichi, Kako knew he wasn't paying attention, and she was tired.

Mr. Ogata had gone to Hawaii for a 'very important matter.' No one had any idea what it was about. Kako didn't think anyone really cared either.

There must have been miscommunication about who was substituting for Ogata, she guessed, because for the first half of the day, they were left in the room alone, told to be quiet and just sit there. This resulted in everyone doing whatever they pleased with the only rules that it was appropriate and they didn't go out of the room.

Kako had nothing to do except bother people, and she didn't want to do even that. The heat was unbearable and all she wanted to do was sleep. Finally, Kako stood up and stumbled towards Kouji, examining what he had been looking at nonstop for the past hour.

"What do you want?" the bandana boy grumbled immediately, prying his eyes off the computer to glare at her.

The girl just gazed at the picture. "What is that?" she asked interestedly. "It's really pretty."

_Typical girl_, Kouji thought, almost disgusted as Kako grabbed the laptop and changed the direction it was facing. Her face moved closer to the screen and Kouji tensed while she commented, "Hey, you know, it looks like it's in water."

His eyes widened. "Water...?" he repeated.

Kako looked up at him in confusion. "So...what's it supposed to be if it isn't water...? Rather, a slab of stone in water, but same difference," she said, watching him grab the laptop and take a closer look. _He doesn't know what it is...?_

"Of course!" Kouji exclaimed, slamming a fist on his desk. He shut his laptop and put it away in its case which he grabbed as he ran out the door.

The entire room fell silent as the sound of the door closing echoed in their ears. A second later, small conversations took place, all discussing Kouji's sudden exit. Kako watched curiously as Kanaye stood up, pushed his chair in, and headed for the door as well. But everyone was too loud to hear him as he quietly shut the door.

Her head was spinning as she returned to her seat. Kako was worried a great deal, but unsure of whether it was justified, she tapped Kouichi's shoulder.

He seemed to be sharing the same thoughts, because he answered softly, "Kouji can take care of himself. Kanaye isn't stupid to start something here." Kouichi's face was void of emotion as he turned around to face her and placed his book down. "Don't worry."

"I'm not worried," Kako replied automatically, slinking down on the desktop and spreading her arms out. Her chin rested on the desk and she murmured again, "I'm not worried. I'm just tired. And Kouji's just acting weird. But he always acts weird. So I guess it isn't that big of a deal..." Sighing, she sat up and met Kouichi's eyes. A smile crept up her face as she did.

Kouichi, confused, looked at her in askance.

Giggling, she lowered her voice. "I brought the egg today. Before this it was at home, but Dad said it ought to get some fresh air, and what better place than school, you know?" she told him, beaming proudly.

"Th-this isn't the place to talk about this," Kouichi sputtered, reddening.

"My, my...Kouichi, I never knew you had such a dirty mind!" Naoko gasped. She slammed a hand on the boy's desk, startling him further. "Just wait until your brother hears!"

He stood up in shock. "What? I wasn't-we weren't-that wasn't-I don't know what you're talking about!" he squeaked indignantly, reddening at the thought.

Kako stuck out her tongue. Snorting, she told Naoko, "_Please_, Naoko, he's too embarrassed to talk about chicken eggs hatching." She shut her eyes and nodded solemnly as Naoko gasped again.

Letting out a disappointed sigh, Naoko asked, "Is that it? Well, that bit of gossip's gone..." Seconds later, she walked off to continue to talk to Ai.

Groaning, Kouichi sank back into his seat and rested his head on his arms. "My reputation," he moaned before looking up and sighing. He propped his elbow on the table and rested a cheek on the palm of his hand as he turned his head to Kako, who sat in Kouji's seat, smiling at him. "Say, are y-" he started, even managing to smile.

He didn't have the chance to finish as Rai came into the room, followed by Kanaye and Kouji. Kako's attention was diverted as well, and when she looked back at him, she seemed troubled. Kouichi frowned when she quietly excused herself and sat back down in her own seat. _Something I missed...?_ He began to wonder, but dismissed it as Kouji sat down, looking triumphant. This alerted Kouichi even more, and he looked over at Kanaye to find the other boy with a perfectly stoic expression on his face. _No one's telling me anything_...

He wondered if there was good reason.

-------------------------------------

_This and this and...one more key to press_. _Now, now...are you going to give up so soon?_ Grumblemon laughed nastily, forcing Shinya to slowly reach his finger towards the last key. His mind ached, his body ached, _he_ ached. Fighting back did no good. It just seemed to make the moment pass by like eternity.

He was forced into the library during lunch by the possessing digimon, forced in front of a computer, forced to continue the files he had come to be disgusted with as they appeared on whatever computer he was at. But this time was different. This time, his muscles ached to finish. He wanted the torment to be over.

_Just a few more keys,_ Grumblemon continuously laughed at him. And then the digimon would claim he lied and that there were more keys. Shinya didn't see why he had to trust the digimon now, but something told him this was _definitely_ the last key.

He fought for all he was worth, taking control of his hand and driving his finger down hard on the key. There was a loud tapping noise, and silence, _dead_ silence followed for the milliseconds that came.

A flood of light escaped the computer, catching Shinya by surprise. He tried to cry out his pain, but nothing came but light...

The next thing he knew, he sat in his chair, staring at a game of solitaire. His throat was dry, and his legs were rubber. "Takuya," he rasped, standing up in his chair. No matter how much he hated his brother at the moment, it was his brother who he wanted to see.

Did he really hate Takuya...? _No, he couldn't do anything for me then, but he wanted to. It's the same thing even now_, Shinya realized, feeling large tears well up in his eyes. He tried to brush them away but they kept coming. And when he wandered out of the library to see the blinding light of day, he felt exhausted and drained, that, no matter where he was, the first thing he wanted to do was take a nap.

Curling up on a nearby bench, Shinya sighed at the warmth from the beating sun and absorbed it happily. His eyelids felt heavy and drooped shut; surely no one would notice if he took a nap for a second or two. The sun was agreeing with him. The tears continued out, no matter the obstacle of closed eyes-that didn't really count.

It had been a long time since Shinya had felt so carefree. _Let me just enjoy this a bit longer_, he begged, allowing himself to lose consciousness as the sun was soon clouded over.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi sat in front of Kako with the egg between them. They were on a field behind the school, taking their time to enjoy the sun while it lasted (Kouichi predicted it to be a rainy day because the weather man predicted it to be sunny, and throughout the week, every prediction the weather man had made was false).

"What do you think will hatch from it?" Kako asked, taking the egg into her hands and smiling at it.

The boy just shook his head. _She's lost it_. "Kako, are you alright?"

She didn't seem to be paying attention. "Maybe a chicken..." murmured Kako, trying to avoid Kouichi's question. Ever since Rai had walked into the classroom, a part of her remembered what her teacher had said. '_Was it for Kouichi?_' she had asked. And because she couldn't answer the question, Kako began to wonder.

Kouichi found her spacing out and shook his head in disbelief. He could hardly begin to comprehend what was wrong with her. "Kako...?" he called out, waving a hand directly in front of her face.

Her eyes glazed over. The egg slipped out of her hands and rolled onto the grass. Swaying slightly side to side, Kako mumbled, "Maybe...a dinosaur..."

"Kako, stop it!" Kouichi shouted, grabbing her by the shoulders and shaking her vigorously. Although he wouldn't admit it, she was scaring him (far more than usual).

Automatically, Kako shouted out, "I'm sane!" but Kouichi was questioning more than her sanity as he let her go and picked up the egg.

"Obviously," he started, regarding her with an eyebrow raised, "_Lobomon_ is going to come out of the egg. Right, Lowemon?" Kouichi looked at the digimon who had appeared behind him. When Lowemon nodded, the boy turned back to Kako and muttered something.

Again, Kako insisted, "I'm sane..." and looked away from Kouichi as a blush formed on her cheeks.

Lowemon smiled, amused by her reaction. In a low voice, he whispered something to Kouichi who paled and muttered, "You really don't need to be so nosy." Reddening even further, Kako turned her back to Kouichi. Lowemon laughed and the boy scowled.

Kouichi pushed himself up to sit by Kako, egg in one hand. He ignored Lowemon's presence furiously and waited for the digimon to disappear. Once the digimon did take his leave, Kouichi broke out into laughter, falling back onto the cool grass. "And he says he's going to undo all of Duskmon's influence," said the boy, laughing harder.

Unable to fail to see the amusement in this, Kako burst into slight giggles, doing her best to hide them. Kouichi sat up and handed Kako the egg, but his hands were still on it. "You know, I'm kind of wondering...about the egg myself. It's Lobomon, I know, but..." He broke off and looked at Kako curiously.

She met his eyes and nodded. "Is it data or what? Or Lobomon...but that would be strange." Kako chuckled at the thought of it.

Smiling warmly, Kouichi nodded in agreement. Unconsciously, he leaned towards her and said, "Kind of strange to think about. Kouji told me Patamon hatched as he was."

Kako felt the egg moving towards her. To stop it's advance, she placed her hand on it and glanced up at Kouichi. "Umm...really?" she asked, not as interested as she tried to sound. She pushed the egg back towards him, suddenly wishing the bell would ring.

"Yeah. But that would be strange for Lobomon," he murmured, stopping as they were just inches apart. "That doesn't matter. Kako, I need to know-" Kouichi started.

They both let out yells of surprise as the egg burst into light, revealing the marks on the digi-egg shining when the blast cleared. Kako and Kouichi both dropped their hold on the egg, both yelping when they realized the other wasn't holding it. In a frantic scramble to recover the egg, which was floating harmlessly in the air while shining, they bumped heads and fell back in pain.

"What is that?" Kako mumbled, rubbing her forehead. She held up a hand in front of her eyes to block the light, which eventually faded. The egg lowered itself in her direction. With outstretched hands, Kako caught it and held it close. "That...was weird," she declared, standing up and walking over to Kouichi.

In response, Kouichi just mumbled something under his breath and felt his forehead. "I think I have a bruise," he finally said, sitting up and looking at Kako, all the while wincing. "Are you made of cement or something?"

She grinned. "I could ask you the same thing."

He let out a laugh and rose to his feet. Kouichi brushed himself off. His eyes were focused on the egg in Kako's hands. _What was that about? It was familiar,_ he realized, but he couldn't quite place the feeling. Instead, he looked at Kako. "We should get back to class, huh?" he suddenly asked.

Nodding, Kako murmured, "We should..." and trailed off. Her gaze was focused steadily on the sky, which had taken on a sudden gray look to it. "It looks like it will rain today after all," she said softly.

No sooner had the words left her lips than raindrops slowly drizzled down to the ground. Muttering under his breath again, Kouichi threw off his jacket and onto Kako's head. "Hurry up, you'll get sick," he snapped, grabbing both their backpacks and racing towards the nearest covered hall.

_This really stinks_, Kako thought, gazing up at the sky. One hand held the jacket down on her head and the other tightened its hold around the egg as she ran after Kouichi.

-------------------------------------

"Kanbara," Kanaye called softly. He stared coldly at the boy who stood beside his locker, looking down at his shoes. "I need to talk to you."

The startled Takuya looked up. His expression turned serious as he nodded and followed Kanaye outside the hall, behind the classrooms, where he discovered the sunny weather had changed on them. _Just proves that teachers are trying to take away all our joy_, he thought with a wry smile.

Kanaye didn't seem interested in the unusual rain one bit. Locking eyes with Takuya, he said, "As you know, your brother _is_ under Grumblemon's control. We've been using him to create the gha-" Kanaye cut himself off, coughing and choking and mentally cursing himself for standing near the wall he was pinned against.

Glaring murderously at Kanaye, Takuya asked in a low voice, "What are you doing with my brother?"

The other boy scowled. He grabbed Takuya's hands, ready to inflict any pain necessary. His better judgment advised against it. Instead, he let his hands drop to his side. "I was _about_ to tell you, Kanbara," Kanaye snapped.

If he had thought Takuya would loosen his grip, Kanaye thought wrong. Mercilessly, Takuya tightened his grip on Kanaye's collar, pushing him against the wall even more. "I don't care. Just say what you were going to," he spat. Takuya pushed Kanaye further into the wall before he let go and turned away. _What...was I doing? Get a hold of yourself, Takuya_, he scolded himself. He had almost forgot himself, and promised to never do that again, no matter the case.

Smoothing out his clothes, Kanaye murmured, "You know very well that Grumblemon is Shinya's shadow. For the past few weeks, we've been using Shinya for our purposes of creating a gate to the Digital World. _However_," he said this quickly, noticing Takuya's fists tense, "however we have no further need for him, and we would like you to know, as of now, signified by this idiotic rainfall, he's perfectly free to do as he pleases.

"That does not change the fact that he is Grumblemon's shadow, nor will anything else. As you are his brother, I found it necessary to alert you. That's all." He stiffened as Takuya turned to him, glaring. _One would think after all I said that he would be grateful, that damned idiot_. He suppressed a scowl and walked off, deciding it was better if he masked his anger.

"So it's done, then?" Takuya called out, staying where he was.

Kanaye stopped in his tracks. A rare smile appeared, but it was hidden to Takuya, who saw only Kanaye's back. "Yes. It's done. He won't suffer anymore, but he wasn't supposed to suffer at all. You'll have to excuse us for the...irreversible effects. Grumblemon wasn't meant to cause that much trouble." He paused and pursed his lips, trying to swallow the smile as he saw Izumi in front of him. "I'll leave you two, then," he said softly, inclining his head in Izumi's direction before walking away.

He hid out of Takuya and Izumi's sight, listening to them discuss Shinya in a low voice. Kanaye let out a frustrated sigh, one that revealed his fatigue. Rubbing the back of his neck, he muttered, "One down, one to go." _Kimura should be somewhere around here_. He blinked several times, feeling an overwhelming dizziness overcome him. It was strange; he never thought being himself would be this mentally demanding. _I guess it makes sense, after hiding myself behind a guise_, he told himself, and made it top priority to find Kouichi.

It didn't take him long. Kanaye found Kouichi by his locker, breathing hard. Beside him stood Kako, with Kouichi's jacket hanging on her head. Both were soaking wet. That was hardly what caught Kanaye's attention. In Kako's arms was a digi-egg, with blue designs on a pale white shell. _Lobomon_, Kanaye thought immediately. He hid himself behind a row of lockers.

"...does it have to be soaking wet?" he heard Kako mutter. She threw the jacket off towards Kouichi.

The boy caught it with ease, smiling sheepishly as he did. "Yes? Does it matter?"

She whined, "I was going to walk home! Obviously it matters!"

Laughing, Kouichi took a seat on the floor, folding up his jacket and placing it his lap. "You know it really doesn't matter. I told Kouji to bring an umbrella just in case. Whether he did is another matter, though," he added with some thought. "You could just borrow that. That is, if he brought the umbrella..." A contemplative frown appeared.

Kako stiffened. "I'm fine."

_What's with her...?_ Kanaye found himself chuckling in amusement. He caught himself immediately and lowered his laughs, muffling them with a sleeve.

"Well, I guess it makes sense. After all, I'm not sure if he brought the umbrella or not..." Kouichi sighed, shaking his head in exasperation.

Kanaye choked back laughter. _He's thinking about an umbrella and she's thinking-...what_ is _she thinking?_ It occurred to him that even if he was Devimon, girls would forever remain a mystery.

The girl seemed to notice it, too. "Th-this isn't about the umbrella, Kouichi...I'll be fine. It's just a light rain fall," she assured him, sitting down as well. As soon as she did, she leapt forward at the sound of thunder, squeaking loudly.

Kouichi winced at the sudden drop of weight on him. "Kako...?" he muttered, trying not to move (he was as good as immobilized, anyway).

Sputtering out incoherent apologies, Kako helped him to his feet and let out another yelp. "The egg! Where's th-..." She scanned the room and let out another squeak. Pointing at the egg, she yelled, "It's bouncing!"

Kouichi winced as he fell down again, toppled down by Kako (yet again). "Kako..." he murmured again, letting out a sigh. _Is she dreaming...?_ He shook his head and pushed her to the side, feeling his heart stop in cold terror as he did.

"Uh...wow, this is a great dream," he managed to say after several seconds of silence.

"IT'S BOUNCING FOR GOODNESS SAKES! WHAT DO YOU THINK PEOPLE WILL SAY IF THEY WALK OVER?" Kako shrieked.

"Wow, nice electronic egg! ...right?" He tried to sound calm, but by this time, Kouichi was shaking with nervous laughter.

"W-well..." Kako sat down beside the bouncing egg and laughed. "What do you think will come out of it? A baby digimon?" she asked, turning her head to Kouichi.

Strangely, Kanaye could imagine her expression although he couldn't see it. Scowling, he glared and tried to push the image of a smiling Kako out of his head. He tried instead to focus on the egg. _What is this about...?_

Kouichi shrugged as he took a seat beside Kako. "Probably. I still think it might be data, and the data'll form Lobomon," he told her, gazing calmly at the egg.

She stared at him in disbelief. Angrily, Kako demanded, "What?" She pushed into his shoulder purposely. "Data? Since when do _digi-eggs_ release _data_?" A laugh escaped her as she scorned his suggestion.

"When hasn't it? Think about it. Digimon are basically data, and that data forms into something. Who's to say it _won't_ just form Lobomon?" he argued, glaring at her.

Kako glared back. "ME!"

"That's lame, Kako. At least give some random theory you might have yourself!"

"It'll be a baby digimon, I'm telling you! Cherubimon and Ophanimon and Seraphimon were, weren't they? Izumi said they were! And getting Lobomon out of the egg would be like getting an adu-"

"DON'T finish that example!" Kouichi barked, flushing red.

Kako clamped her mouth shut and reddened as well. After a while, she insisted, "Well it's true!"

The boy just scowled. "Data and a full grown digimon are two different things. I mean the data will come out. Sure, for a second, Lobomon might be a baby digimon, but we won't know the difference, will we? It'll just be a shining egg." He paused thoughtfully and looked back at the egg.

"I guess..."

"He's right, you know," Kanaye found himself saying. He nearly cursed aloud when he realized this, but it was too late. Revealing himself, he leaned against the nearby lockers in a manner so he was visible to the two. "Lobomon's egg merely holds his spirit and data. My guess is, instead of a baby, we'll see this data go straight into Kouji's D-Tector, and when the time is right, we'll see Lobomon himself. There is also the possibility that Lobomon will, as Kimura said, for a mere second in our eyes, be a baby digimon. We'll have to wait and see. It depends on the maturity the egg has reached. Why are you both looking at me like that?" he snapped immediately after his explanation.

Defensively, Kako returned, "How long were you _standing_ there?" She noticed the egg and grabbed it, clutching it firmly and close to her as she glared at Kanaye.

He shrugged and smiled thinly. _It won't hurt to play along_. "Long enough," he replied smugly.

"GAAAAAAH!"

Kako scrambled to her feet, ready to lunge towards Kanaye, but her companion grabbed a hold of her arm. Rolling his eyes, Kouichi muttered, "He's just playing with you, Kako. Why are you letting him get to you?"

Kako pointed at Kanaye and insisted, "He's going to tell everyone!"

"Does...it really matter?" Kouichi suddenly asked.

_What are we talking about here?_ The question seemed to be on everyone's mind.

Nevertheless, Kouichi quickly avoided this. Standing up with his jacket in hand, he asked Kanaye, "Kouji doesn't have his D-Tector, so if, as you said, the egg were to hatch, what would happen?" While asking his question and awaiting an answer, he moved to open his locker and stuff his soaked jacket in it.

"It won't hatch in that case," Kanaye stated matter-of-factly. "That will probably lead to the second option."

Kouichi shut his locker and locked it. "Oh. Okay." He turned to face Kanaye and inclined his head in the other boy's direction politely. "Thank you," he murmured.

Kanaye just shrugged. Turning so his back was to Kouichi, he murmured, "One more day. Use it wisely."

All Kouichi could do was stare in confusion as his nemesis walked off. It was almost strange. More towards the beginning of the year, he viewed Kanaye as hostile, arrogant...a definite Lucemon like figure. In fact, had it not been for Ogata's _extreme_ evil, Kouichi would have thought Kanaye was a more suitable Lucemon. But now the boy just seemed docile...calm..._human_.

"Kouichi, what did he mean?" he heard Kako ask.

Brushing away her hand that had been tugging his sleeve absentmindedly, Kouichi shrugged. His eyes watched Kanaye fade away before he let them rest on Kako. "I..." _One more day...? One more day. I'm supposed to use it well. One more day until what...?_ He was sure he knew the answer; whatever it was, he was only sure that Kanaye's advice was safe to follow. _They_ do_ say live every day like your last after all_, Kouichi thought, amused.

Kako had begun to wave her hand in front of his face. "Hello? Earth to Kouichi?" she called out loudly.

"I'll take you home after school. How does that sound?" Kouichi suddenly asked.

Taken aback, Kako stared at him (and nearly dropped the egg). Bringing the egg up to her chin, she blushed and mumbled, "Sure...um, okay..." and in the back of her head wondered, _What's this about...?_ If she didn't know him so well, she would have assumed he was trying to murder her.

Nodding, Kouichi turned around and walked off in the direction Kanaye had. He held up a hand as he did, waving. "Great, I'll see you after school," he called back, not bothering to wait for her even though they were in the same class.

Noticing this forgotten fact, Kako cried out, "W-Wait for me! I have to put the egg away!" _And maybe the talk's long overdue anyway,_ she realized.

-------------------------------------

The two quietly walked side by side under the umbrella Kouji had actually brought. The younger twin had brought two, predicting something like this would happen, and was heading home himself. Kouichi didn't mind much. It just meant that they were free to talk without anyone they knew hearing.

Not that they were talking much. Both were unsure of what to say, but seemingly thinking hard.

"Kouichi," Kako suddenly blurted, quickly covering her mouth with both hands.

He looked at her, puzzled. "Yeah...?"

Swallowing, Kako laughed and looked up at him with a fake smile. "I was...uh...j-just thinking...you know, about what Kanaye said..." She stopped.

Kouichi rose an eyebrow.

"You think...it's got something to do with Lucemon?" Kako asked quietly, her smile fading.

"I..."

She looked at him expectantly.

Kouichi burst out laughing and rubbed the back of his neck. "I have no idea!" he admitted, continuing to laugh.

"YOU IDIOT!"

Visibly wincing, Kouichi rubbed his injured arm. "You _say_ you have no idea, but that's a lie!" Kako snapped accusingly, even pointing.

They had stopped all progress towards Kako's house, and Kouichi was sure people were staring at them. Calmly, he pushed her finger away. "Don't point. It's rude," he told her instead.

"I _don't_ care!"

"Kako, you should. If Lucemon says something, and you point at him and yell, what's going to stop him from killing you on the spot?" Kouichi scolded her, trying not to laugh at the incredibly ridiculous example. _Maybe I should have used crazy madman_, he mused.

Kako folded her arms and glared at him. "I'm sure Lucemon wouldn't be that rude, so there's nothing to worry about. That isn't the point, Kouichi. I-...um, that is to say, _we_ need to talk." She said the last part slowly, trying to emphasize her point.

_I guess I should have used crazy madman._ Aloud, Kouichi just shrugged. "We are talking."

She let out a frustrated sigh and insisted, "It isn't the same thing!" Before Kouichi could say anything else, Kako continued, "We've talked before, but nothing was fixed. We're as confused as we were before, as far as I'm concerned! No changes! Nothing significant! If you're trying to run an experiment here, Kouichi, it's not going to work. Where are your variables?" Glaring, she opened her mouth to continue further and stopped when she realized what she said.

Smiling slightly, Kouichi told her, "Nice example, but...it's kind of weird. We have talked. Sure, nothing's changed, but honestly, Kako, I like things the way they are. Christmas...I realized I didn't want anything between us to change. If we couldn't be more, we might as well be friends. I don't want to take unnecessary risks." He shut his eyes, leaned back against a nearby building, and held the umbrella out towards her, seeing the rain catch her sleeve. "Maybe we should take a chance, but for now-"

"Exactly, Kouichi, take a chance-"

"For _now_," Kouichi said again, opening his eyes and brushing away the raindrops that had fallen and slid down onto his face. He tried to continue, but his mind blanked out. Instead, he stood up straight and grabbed Kako under the umbrella. "Let's just take you home..."

-------------------------------------

Takuya sat beside his brother's bed, clutching the sheets in his trembling hands. _Please, Shinya, wake up_, he begged silently, but said nothing.

"Takuya, would you please get the soup for Shinya?" he heard his mother call out.

His grip tightened. Shutting his eyes, Takuya drew a shaky breath and tried to let it out, but it came out in the form of a sob. One hand left the sheets to close his mouth.

"I've got it," Izumi murmured, placing a hand gently on the boy's shoulder and smiling before she left. She knew very well that Takuya didn't see her smile, but she could feel he knew.

_Thank you_. "Thank you," Takuya whispered aloud. "Get...get out of him..." He looked at Shinya, glaring at the face he saw just below the surface of his brother's unconscious one.

Sneering, Grumblemon just laughed. Instead of it being eerie or creepy, Takuya found it to be irksome. Clutching his fists and deepening them into the side of the bed, he yelled, "Get...OUT!"

There was a crash somewhere in the hallway, followed by gasps and a muffled conversation. Exhausted, Takuya fell forward, allowing an arm to cushion the fall for his head. Silent cries racked through his body and tears escaped him freely. In the back of his mind, he thought, _Please, Shinya, please_. _Just this once, would you listen to me?_ And the thought only made him cry harder.

"Ta...Takuya, you're hurting my arm," came a tired voice.

Surprised, the goggle boy looked up, quickly wiping his eyes as he did. He cleared his throat and gazed down awkwardly at his brother. "Uh...Shinya, how are you?" he asked conversationally, looking around the room to avoid his brother's eyes.

Shinya just shook his head. He pointed at his brother and declared, "You were crying."

"I was not!" Takuya shouted.

"Then why do you have tear stains?"

There was growling while he thought of another answer. Takuya shouted a split second later, "Mom had me cut onions for your stupid soup!"

Shinya managed a weak smile as he sat up. "Where's the soup?" he asked.

"I-...where _is_ the soup...?" Takuya questioned as well, looking around.

"Izumi dropped it when you yelled," Agunimon informed him, appearing behind the goggle boy.

Takuya froze. _Oh...oops_.

_Oops won't prevent your murder_, Agunimon returned, smiling and waving at Shinya. "You wouldn't believe the stupid things Takuya did while he was waiting for you to wake up. Running back and forth like a girl and screaming..." The digimon burst out into laughter.

"Agunimon!" Takuya scowled.

Nevertheless, the three burst out into a short laughter, until Shinya started coughing. Takuya stopped, a worried look replacing the laughter as he waited anxiously for Shinya to stop (he had no idea what to do, after all, and his brain was too frozen to be functioning).

Gasping weakly as he finished his coughing, Shinya tugged on his brother's sleeve, or attempted to. He barely reached the cloth, but managed to catch Takuya's attention nevertheless. "One more day," he whispered, falling back onto his pillow, exhausted.

Takuya jumped to his feet. Panicking, he said, "Shinya...? Are you okay?"

"He's just exhausted," Izumi told him.

Takuya turned around, pale-faced as he saw her by the doorway, bowl of soup in hand. "Uh...another bowl?" he guessed.

Izumi nodded and walked over, placing the bowl on the desk before stepping on Takuya's foot and hissing, "You idiot. You wasted a perfectly good bowl. What were you yelling about?" She tapped her foot (on his) as she waited for an answer.

_Ow, ow, ow_. "I saw Grumblemon," Takuya insisted.

The girl stopped and gazed at Shinya. "He said, 'One more day.' Any idea what he meant?" she asked, feeling Shinya's forehead for a temperature.

Takuya shook his head grimly. "I was just about to ask you."

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A/N-

Maybe under ten chapters is more reasonable. .:must get back on track:.

Thanks for the review- **GemmaniGirl**

Review or PM or Flame.


	35. At The Beginning

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

Dedication-Fanfiction itself for giving me a way to counter boredom on Spring Break.

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At The Beginning

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Kouji felt himself stumble through a brightly lit field. Thousands of feelings swarmed through him, but he could feel one overpower them all.

Fear.

He shut his eyes and tried to breathe, as Mr. Tsukoshiro had so often instructed him. _Concentrate on your breath, Kouji_, he told himself, imagining a breeze blowing back and forth as he breathed in and out. Slowly, he felt himself calm.

When he opened his eyes again, he expected to see the ceiling of his room, or even the same bright light he had encountered before he opened his eyes. Instead there was a nightmare of darkness. He could feel himself falling, but there was no distinguishable top or bottom. As far as Kouji was concerned, he was falling headfirst, deeper into the darkness that surrounded him.

It was at that image when he awoke, panting and brushing the cold sweat off his forehead. He sat up and continuously murmured to himself, "Only a dream. Just a dream. Only a dream," but it was useless reassuring, because the feeling was stuck in his gut. Crying out in anguish, Kouji doubled over, resting his head on his knees to muffle himself.

One more day, useless, inevitable...he _hated_ those words. He _especially_ hated the person who could use it all in one sentence.

He had finally figured out the third point. After all, Lucemon would need a third point in order to open the gate, as it would be an area actually occupied by digimon. He had chosen Hawaii, Japan and the middle of the ocean, Kouji guessed, making the so-called 'gate' more of a deadlier Bermuda Triangle. The more he looked at the second picture, the more he realized he had been so stupid for overlooking something like that. It wasn't element based. It was pure common sense.

_Something I must lack,_ Kouji thought bitterly, sitting up and staring at his laptop. He frowned. _Open_ and _on? I didn't forget to turn it off, did I?_ He pushed the covers aside and stood up, making his way to the computer and sitting down in the chair in front of the desk.

Dread.

The same fear that had entered him in his dream was with him now. _One new e-mail...? Newly arrived, minutes ago?_ Kouji stared at the computer screen bleakly and Kanaye's words came back to him faster than air could enter his system: '_So you have it, do you? One more day, Kouji, and keep in mind that it's useless to stop the inevitable._' So Kanaye had said, but...

"'For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.' Roughly Newton's words," Kouji told himself. _And there's got to be some way to stop this, too_. He smiled, seeing the familiar e-mail address of his anonymous tipper. _Another tip?_ He clicked the e-mail open.

'_...go outside_.'

Kouji blinked at the words for several seconds before he shook his head. _This is stupid_. _They must stink with words_. _It's no wonder they sent pictures and nothing else the other three times before_. He stood up and parted the blinds of his window, looking outside. A moonless sky, stars dotted everywhere, and-

_Wait...that's not right_, Kouji realized, peering out the window again. _What happened to all that sky glow?_ Not bothering to remember the e-mail, Kouji dashed towards the front door, ignoring the fact that he was in his pajamas, slipping on his shoes, and throwing open the door as he bolted outside.

There wasn't a single star in the sky. The street lamps weren't on either. Kouji felt his breath hitch in his throat. _Dark...like my dream_, he thought, clenching his fists and turning around to dash back inside. He fell back when he realized there was no door. The darkness was accumulating around him, covering the entire world with a black substance, neither goop nor smoke.

Kouji began to panic as he stood up again, slashing through the almost solid darkness, running this way and that, trying to find a way out. He tried to yell, "Help," but his voice was lost. Tumbling forward, Kouji let out a pained groan, but even that was barely audible. Weakly managing his way back onto his feet, he looked around.

Darkness.

He tried to blink back tears as he looked around desperately for a way out. And, just as in his dream, he shut his eyes and began to breath, trying to think of what other people would do. _What would Takuya do in this situation? No...no, I need someone more reasonable. Kouichi? I...I don't know what to do. Someone, please, help_...

He opened his eyes, hoping to find himself out of the nightmare he had gotten into. Everything was just as dark as it had been before. Swallowing, Kouji held up a hand in front of his eyes. He could see it, contrasted brightly against his dark surroundings. _Wait...I can see myself?_ With this piece of knowledge, Kouji managed to calm down.

Again, he shut his eyes and took several deep breaths before opening his eyes again. He repeated this several times with the same results: a calm Kouji, still stuck in pitch black. And though the darkness blocked his view of the real world, he guessed it to be morning by now, and decided he could do nothing but wait.

-------------------------------------

Tomoki felt himself nod off again. Holding back the want to curse, he headed to the bathroom and splashed his face before quickly returning to his place in front of the computer. _Thanks for calling, Ichiro_. _You suck_.

A tired smile appeared. _Bokomon would have done the same...actually, I don't think he would have_. Tomoki rested his head on the tabletop and shut his tired eyes. _Hurry up, slow poke_.

There was a ring. Tomoki jumped to his feet and sat down immediately as the second ring sounded. He made a frantic grab for the phone and turned it on. "Hello?" he said, all too eagerly.

"Lenny's Pizza, how may I help you?" came the answer.

Feeling disappointed, Tomoki muttered, "Other way around. You called me."

The person on the other side of the line cleared their throat. "I SEE. PEPPERONI?" they said loudly.

_Oh wait-of course!_ Tomoki grinned, resisting the urge to slap his forehead. "Hi, Ichiro," he whispered.

"Hush."

"I mean, yeah, one pepperoni pizza."

"You know," he heard Ichiro say casually, "Pepperonis are funny things. You take a pizza and throw them on the cheese, and all the white cheese is blotted out by red. If you burn the pizza and the pepperoni turns black by chance, well, you assume what you will."

_Black blotting out white...?_ Tomoki frowned, but said nothing.

Ichiro continued, "Say, I heard from one of your friends the other day. Kouji, was it? He recommended you here, didn't he?"

"Oh, did you?" _Kouji? Darkness? I don't get it_, Tomoki thought helplessly.

"He doesn't seem himself lately. What's your opinion on the matter?"

"What do you mean?" Tomoki suddenly cried. Both hands grasped tightly onto the phone. "Ichiro! Ichiro!" he yelled.

The line was dead.

Cursing aloud the words that had begged to be let out, Tomoki slammed the phone down on the receiver and rose to his feet. The motivation that entered him quickly left, leaving him to slump back down into his seat.

_What can I do? It's the middle of the night_. Tomoki let out a sigh and looked around his room. "Kumamon...?" he called out softly.

The digimon appeared beside him, staring gravely at the computer. "Tomoki, I believe you might want to check your e-mail," he said.

Startled, Tomoki complied, wondering miserably in the back of his mind why Kumamon was as he was. He could have sworn the digimon growled, but he wasn't sure. Opening his inbox, he discovered he had a new e-mail. Slowly, Tomoki read aloud the subject, "'_From a friend_'...? Sounds fishy." He looked at Kumamon, who was glaring intensely at the computer. _What is wrong...?_

"Open it," Kumamon commanded, the growl now obvious.

Tomoki clicked the e-mail open, mainly by accident. Kumamon's tone had caused him to jump, and his finger brushed down on the mouse, and the cursor had been over the 'read' button. The boy looked from the computer screen to the digimon, bewildered by the never-ending one-way glaring contest that was taking place. Finally, tensing up, he turned to the computer screen. Wide-eyed, he whispered, "This is some joke, right...?"

"'_Got him_,'" Kumamon sneered bitterly, reading off the e-mail. "It seems Lucemon's short on words. The others should be up soon, no doubt. Tomoki, we only have a few hours." He looked at the boy calmly, but his eyes clearly betrayed his worry.

Angrily, Tomoki brought his hand down on the mouse again. "I don't care! First explain!" he yelled furiously, rising to his feet. Burning with rage, he opened his mouth to continue.

"Tomoki, stop talking in your sleep," he heard his father groan.

Unclenching his fists, Tomoki sank back into the chair. "Please, Kumamon...?" he begged of his friend.

Head bowed, Kumamon murmured, "The explanation will come...but first, Tomoki, you have to trust me. We only have so long. Let's get the others first, and _then_ I'll explain."

Tomoki nodded, ignoring the tears that spilled out of his eyes. "What do I have to do?"

-------------------------------------

Kako bit her lip nervously. _Three in the morning and chaos has already begun_. _I guess there are down sides to staying at a monstrously huge house?_ Holding back a wail, she flung her arms around wildly at her sides. _Here, little digi-Lobo-egg! Come on, I know you're out there_.

Sure, a house as large as her father's had advantages when it came to 'Hide-the-alcohol-from-the-idiot-family,' but when it came to 'Find-the-bouncing-digi-egg,' all hell broke loose.

Kako let out a groan and threw her hands up. "I give up," she said aloud, but in a whisper. "Where are you?"

As if understanding this, the egg appeared out of nowhere, bouncing up the stairs towards her. Kako rose an eyebrow, partly amused by this. _You beat a dog any day_, she thought, smiling inwardly as she caught the digi-egg in her arms.

On cue with this, the doorbell rang. The egg, which she thought would have fallen limp in her arms, bounded down the stairs again, towards the door. Silently scolding herself for not having a tighter grip, Kako ran downstairs as fast as she could, nearly tripping several times, and stopped, staring at the sight before her.

The door was open, the egg was gone.

_No, no, no, no, NO!_ Kako looked around wildly, backing up against the door and slamming it shut. "No!" she hissed aloud. "Come on, stupid digi-Lobo-egg! This isn't the time to be playing!" Panicking, Kako pushed off the door and ran around the living room, looking in every nook and cranny she could find.

Her search proved fruitless and she collapsed on the nearest couch. _Damn...it...all...Kouichi wouldn't have lost it_. This thought emitted a short wail from her, which was shortly interrupted by the doorbell ringing.

Kako eagerly raced to the door, hoping the egg had come back (if indeed it had run outside). Her disappointment was shown with another wail when she opened the door and discovered Tomoki, out of breath.

"I...need you to call everyone," the boy breathed, his D-Tector in hand.

Suddenly, Kako stopped. "Stalker!" she shouted. "How did you know I was here?"

"Uh, Hideki left a note on the door of the normal house. What's with this place anyway? It's so huge..." he said this and trailed off, stepping inside and taking in the sights.

Kako shut the door. "So, what's this about calling everyone?" she asked. In the back of her mind, she made a mental note to tell Kouichi about the egg and prayed it had run to him to escape her imaginary cruelty.

They made their way to the living room and sat down on opposite couches. Tomoki shrugged and replied, "Ask Kumamon. I brought my cell phone, so we can call two people at a time. Three if you steal Hideki's cell phone."

"I wouldn't touch that thing for the world," Kako replied dryly, picking up the phone on the table and dialing the first number that came to mind. "I call Izumi and Kouichi!" she said quickly.

Scowling, the boy nodded and they got to work.

-------------------------------------

_Something's wrong_, Kouichi realized as he fell onto the floor, cushioned by the bed sheets he was tangled in. He blinked tiredly and looked around the room. _And it's definitely not about my D-Tector being on the floor or Mr. Saito's keys on my desk_.

He rose to his feet with great reluctance, hoping it was at least six. Much to his dismay, it wasn't even four. _Why do I have to keep waking up early?_ Kouichi scowled and took a final glance around his room. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary and so he left for the kitchen.

"I could have overslept, but no, I had to wake up early. It's always waking up early, and I never oversleep, even when I attempt to. How is it that Kouji can and I can't?" Kouichi muttered as he rubbed his eyes and walked into the living room. He stopped there and looked up, surprised. "Kouji. Why are you staring out the door?" he suddenly asked curiously.

Slowly, his brother turned around. If anything, Kouji looked tired. "I couldn't sleep," he said bluntly.

_No wonder he oversleeps_, Kouichi thought, holding back a laugh. He walked into the kitchen and asked aloud, "Want anything to eat?"

"No, I think I'll go for a walk."

Kouichi paused his ministrations in the kitchen and strained his ears. _Since when has Kouji ever been monotone?_ He forced himself to shrug the matter off as he heard the door shut. Worrying never accomplished anything.

He scanned the kitchen for a while before deciding he really wasn't hungry either. That feeling he had felt when he had woken up still lingered within the house. Deciding a book would take his mind off things, Kouichi went back into his room to pick up the book he had been reading. _Kind of strange I'm reading Mr. Saito's books_, Kouichi thought, letting out a laugh.

A thought hit him hard in the back of the head. He dropped the book just as he walked out of his room. _But wait! Hideki said_...

Jumping up before he could pick up his book again, Kouichi scanned the room for the distracting sound. A quiet ring sounded again, and he made a dash for the phone. _Who on earth would call this late at night?_ Nevertheless, he answered the phone with a tired, "Hello?"

"Kouichi?"

Immediately, Kouichi straightened his posture. "Uhh...? What's wrong?" he asked.

"Wh-what gave you the idea that something was wrong?" Kako answered with a nervous laugh.

"Oh, other than the fact that you're calling at three who-cares-what?" Kouichi retorted, putting his sarcasm into play.

"Um, Tomoki said to ask Kumamon, but I assume he's gathering the digimon."

"Where are you?"

"Dad's house. Can you make it here?"

"Sure..." _I think_, but he said nothing aloud.

"I'll have your head if you don't. Everyone else is on their way."

"And they're walking?"

"Actually-"

Another ring, this time from the doorbell. "Wait...I'll call you back if needed. Someone's at the door. Probably Kouji...must've forgotten the key." Despite the protests from Kako, Kouichi hung up and ran to open the door. He nearly fell backward from exasperation.

Letting out a small laugh, Takuya waved. "Um...say, I was thinking..."

Kouichi scowled, "_Don't_ say anything. Why don't you just digivolve and poof? It's three-"

"Four, actually," Izumi interrupted. She smiled and added, "Please? Kazemon disappeared."

From behind her, Junpei nodded glumly. "Blitzmon too," he muttered.

_What is this about?_ Grumbling, Kouji looked around. _Lowemon?_

"You're lucky I haven't left," Lowemon replied. He eyed the four warily. "Why don't you just walk, lazy humans?" he inquired.

"I'm tired," Takuya whined. "I had soccer practice yesterday evening."

Izumi hid her amusement. "Takuya, are you sure that wasn't a dream? You were with Shinya all of yesterday," she informed him.

"Oh yeah!"

Sulking, Junpei said, "I was following Ritsuo all over the place until eight yesterday. Have mercy, would you?"

Kouichi gazed up at Lowemon, awaiting the digimon's decision. They exchanged curt nods, and Kouichi ran to his room, picking up his D-Tector and the keys he had snatched from Mr. Saito, then ran out to the others, slipping on his jacket and shoes.

He noticed Takuya gazing at him and sent a look of askance. "Kouichi, do you _always_ sleep in your normal clothes?" the goggle boy asked with great interest.

"Actually...no. I fell asleep studying for the math test we're supposed to have tomorrow -er...today," the boy replied. He then asked, "Everyone have their D-Tectors?"

"Yes!" came the chorus.

_Joy. I feel like a pack-mule_. Reluctantly shutting the door behind him as he exited the house, Kouichi digivolved into KaiserLeomon. "Hop on," he muttered.

_So make them walk_, he heard Lowemon reply in a faint voice.

-------------------------------------

Kako felt herself pacing in her head. _What do I tell Kouichi? Do I say, 'Oh, I lost the egg,' or panic and wail and scream and tell him when he asks me what's wrong? Maybe I just shouldn't tell him. Maybe I should_-

"Why are you pacing?" Tomoki asked interestedly, watching Kako go back and forth, one hand punching the couch every so often.

She stopped and reddened. _So I _was_ pacing_.

The doorbell rang, and she raced to the front door, using it as an excuse from the conversation. _Anyone but Kouichi, anyone but Kouichi,_ she prayed, immediately cursing when the first thing she saw was a grumpy Kouichi. "It's _not_ my fault!" she declared immediately without reason.

Kouichi held out the 'borrowed' keys. "Uh, I...found these," he lied lamely.

"AHA! So you _did_ break into the house and steal it-him-whatever!"

"What are you talking about?" Kouichi examined the keys in his hands. "These are the keys to the bookstore."

"So you hid him in the _bookstore_?" she shrieked.

Tomoki rushed beside Kako. "Wait, where's Kouji?" he asked.

Again, the thought hit Kouichi in the back of the head like a mean smack. He winced and shrugged as he informed them, "Out for a walk. He didn't really seem himself." Distracted by Kako's guilty shifting, Kouichi trailed off and gazed at the girl with curiosity. "You weren't talking about Kouji, were you?" he asked, mildly amused.

"NO!" Kako shouted, furiously blushing. She dragged Kouichi into the living room and muttered under her breath so the others couldn't hear, "The _egg_."

Kouichi jumped to his feet. "YOU LOST IT?"

"IT WASN'T MY FAULT! THE THING BOUNCED OUT OF HERE!"

"YOU'RE RIDICULOUS! _I_ SHOULD HAVE KEPT IT!"

"YEAH, YOU'D HAVE LOST IT, TOO, YOU KNOW! IN YOUR MESSY CLOSET!"

"HOW WOULD YOU KNOW IF MY CLOSET IS MESSY?"

Kako opened her mouth to retort but quickly closed it. Smiling smugly, she replied, "I've got my sources."

Scowling, Kouichi threw the keys in her direction and sat down on the couch, folding his arms across his chest and glaring crossly in front of him. As soon as everyone else was seated, Kumamon appeared in front of the TV. "Alright, someone go get Marise," he finally said after several seconds of staring at everyone.

Narrowing his eyes on the digimon, Kouichi inquired, "Shouldn't he have been the _first_ to come and not us?" His annoyance was obvious by the tone of his voice.

Kumamon scowled, "Just get him!"

"I got it," Kako muttered, casting a glare in Kouichi's direction. Everyone but Kouichi watched as she stormed up the stairs and then turned to Kouichi.

"Alright, what did you do?" Izumi asked, eyes sparkling with interest. She, Takuya, Junpei and Tomoki sat on one couch while Kouichi sat on the other.

Slightly intimidated by the way they were looking at him, Kouichi sputtered, "I didn't do anything! _She's_ the one that lost it!"

Takuya cackled. "It? Aren't you too young to get married?" he laughed.

"What?"

Seeing his joke shot down by confusion, Takuya leaned back against the couch and began to sulk. In his stead, Junpei asked, "What did she lose?"

"Nothing!" Kouichi clamped his mouth shut, deciding he had given away enough as it was.

The talking was cut short with the arrival of a bleary-eyed Hideki. "What's going on here...?" he asked curiously, staring at the guests on the couch. "Where's Ka-" He gasped. "_You_ let them in, didn't you? Kako gave you the key, huh? Aw, so sweet," he commented, cackling as he looked at Kouichi.

"STOP SPUTTERING NONSENSE!"

"You too!" Kako snapped, racing down the stairs, followed by her father, who was moving slower and yawning as he descended. Deciding she was still angry with Kouichi, Kako ran towards her brother and gently stepping on his foot as she hid half of herself behind his form and stuck her tongue out at Kouichi.

Kouichi made a move to stick his tongue out as well, but thought better of it with all the people around, and instead rose to his feet with Marise's arrival. "Sir," he said stiffly, but with great respect.

Still yawning, Marise waved a dismissive hand towards Kouichi. "Now...now..." Another yawn. "What's this about...? Or have you interrupted my beauty sleep for nothing?" He beamed at everyone as he stood in front of the TV, blocking Kumamon.

"Um...Sir," Kumamon said, gazing up at the back of Marise's head.

Marise turned around and looked for the owner of the voice. "What?"

Kumamon stood straight, lifting up his chin as he spoke, "D-Down here..."

Embarrassed as Marise laughed, Tomoki slapped his forehead and buried his head into the arm of the couch. "I'm kidding," Marise said gently, nodding towards Kumamon.

"Now I know where Hideki gets _his_ humor," Kako muttered. Hideki scowled and pushed his sister towards the couch Kouichi sat at. She fell unceremoniously beside the boy, resisting the urge to curse at Hideki. _Stupid brother_.

Marise sent a stern glance towards his daughter. "Hush. Let's get to business-"

Tomoki cleared his throat. Standing up, he said in a small voice, "First, an explanation."

Amused, Marise nodded. "Of course." He clapped his hands together and said, "But first, how about some food?"

Everyone groaned, but Junpei finally admitted, "I _am_ hungry..." and everyone soon discovered they were too.

Minutes later, gnawing on a piece of bread, Takuya asked, "So what's this about?"

Marise sat serenely in a chair he had pulled up. "You see, as of lunch yesterday, you had one full day until the gate would open," he told them.

"Yeah, so...until tomorrow."

"No, Takuya. Twenty-four hours."

Takuya dropped the bread.

Raising an eyebrow, Marise asked, "That's the problem, then?" Numb, Takuya shook his head silently. "Well you see, lunch today will be when the gate opens. I'm not so sure what will happen-" A cough from Hideki interrupted him, but Marise continued, "I'm not so sure what will happen, but you should be ready for anything. Which means you have to pig out now, because there won't be any food waiting you at the entrance to the Area." He leaned back in his chair and regarded them with some amusement twinkling in his eyes.

"The area?" Junpei asked, letting some food fall from his mouth.

Disgusted, Izumi rolled her eyes. "Shut you mouth," she snapped.

As Junpei did so, Marise murmured, "The Area. Lucemon will open a three-point gate. That will form a triangle, you know, and so there will be a part of the Digital World that will replace that stretch. Kako, _please_ stop stabbing the plate."

"Sorry," Kako muttered, dropping her fork onto the plate.

Kouichi snorted, "Sure, like you're sorry about losing it?"

Angrily, Kako turned to him and snapped, "It's _not_ my fault!"

"Right."

"Well why don't _you_ go look for it?"

"FINE!"

"FINE!"

"Stop copying me!" Kouichi scowled, rising to his feet and glaring down at Kako.

Sneering, Kako mimicked mockingly, "Stop copying me."

"Baby."

"Old man!"

"Immature!"

"_Too_ mature!"

"Shut up, would you?"

"And _I'm_ immature?"

"You're _annoying_."

"I could say the sa-"

"SHUT UP," Hideki bellowed, slamming down his fist on the couch arm. He turned his head to glare at Kako and Kouichi menacingly. "It's early in the morning and you two are complaining about _who-cares-what_ when we want to hear what's going on," he growled.

Kouichi fell back into his seat and looked away from Kako. Beside him, Kako stared at her hands, folded neatly in her lap.

Marise cleared his throat. "As I was saying, this will happen. Lucemon will be sending out..._troops_...to...scare the humans. They aren't our main worry. As a defense trigger, any humans will avert to digimon form, the case being they're close to a gate. Considering Japan and Hawaii are both filled with gates that have been ripping open, they should be fine.

"Perhaps we should figure out terms, as the word 'gate' shows up much too often and is too general. The Area is much like a gate, you could say. It's a world within a world, and will now be referred to as _the Area_. Gates are tears in the system that allow...interdimension travel.

"Our purpose is to, quite obviously, get rid of Lucemon. We want to aim on this before destroying the heart of the Area, which will be almost like a fractal code. It will be in, as I said, the heart of the Area, obviously the middle. By destroying the Area before, we postpone the possibility of defeating Lucemon, giving him the chance to grow stronger.

"There is also another goal." Marise paused and a grave look swallowed any amusement held on his face previously. "As Kako knows, at least, at the heart of the worlds rests a certain amount of Chaos. The Chaos of the Digital World has grown beyond that of any normal world's, and so we have to put a stop to this." Another pause. "This will...as you know, destroy the Digital World."

Kouichi stood up, gazing angrily at Marise. "And they're _okay_ with this?" he blurted, horrified at the prospect.

It sickened him to see Marise nod so calmly. The man motioned to Kouichi. "Lowemon?" he said.

Lowemon stepped forth, looking Kouichi in the eye. There was no hesitation in his voice as he said, "If it must be done, Kouichi, it must be done. Keep in mind there are other dimensions suffering from this. We know our fate, and we accept it."

The scowling fire warrior appeared beside Lowemon. "You sound stupid, Lowemon," Agunimon snapped. "Don't sound so prophetic. Hey, it's a sucky choice, but we'll live with it. There, honest and truthful to the last word." He sent a grin to Takuya. "Your goggles are crooked, you know?" he said.

Takuya rested a hand on his goggles, gazing sullenly at the food before him. Beside him, Izumi asked softly, "So we won't ever see you again?"

She saw Kazemon appear. "Sorry." A faltering smile appeared on Kazemon's face.

Blitzmon muttered, "In the next lifetime."

"If there _is_ a next lifetime! What if my lifetimes are up? This isn't some videogame," Junpei said morosely.

"You're all too glum! Cheer up," Tomoki tried to exclaim, but it came as down-noted as everyone else's sentences.

There was a frustrated sigh. "This...this is ridiculous," Kouichi spat, clenching his fists and glaring at the ground. "Don't tell me there's no other way."

Hideki let out a yawn. "Go think up a way in five minutes," he mumbled.

Without warning, Kouichi turned to him, glaring. "Shut up!" the boy growled viciously. He turned back to Marise. "This is ridiculous! All because of some stupid..._stupid_ system that gets your wife killed, you decide it's time to destroy the Digital World. We might as well let Lucemon live! He'll destroy it for us! The only reason I'm fighting is so that world will thrive, and I'm not about to go and destroy it!" he yelled.

Marise was quiet for the first few second. Calmly, he stood up and nodded. "Even if it meant your brother dying? What about your mother?" he asked softly. "I'm not saying the digimon don't matter, Kouichi. We aren't destroying the _world_. We are aiming to destroy the Chaos. But a world cannot thrive with chaos, and too much can cause it to malfunction as well. Balances cannot be upset. You must understand this." Sighing, Marise murmured, "And this is not about my life, Kouichi. This is about your future."

"As far as I'm concerned at the moment...m-my future...doesn't exist."

"You're right." Smiling a tired smile, the man sank back in his seat. "It doesn't. The egg is gone, and do you know why? It's ready to hatch. Past ready, actually, but Kouji's D-Tector hasn't arrived. Do you know what's wrong with Kouji, Kouichi?" In the same gentle voice that Kouichi couldn't help but feel pierce through his mental barriers he had put up, Marise said, "Of course not. I can't explain anymore, excuse me, but I will soon. We'll wait for the morning to arrive and get ready. I'm sure you're already acquainted with the Area Lucemon is using to replace the bit of Earth?" The amusement in his eyes was back, twinkling stronger than ever.

No one said anything, but sat quietly and gazed at the floor. Although he wasn't sitting, Kouichi was just as quiet until he murmured, "I'm going for a walk." He made his way to the door clumsily, hanging his head as he walked past Marise and his friends. A walk would clear his mind, he was sure.

As far as he was concerned, Kouichi was on square one of the game board again.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Action soon. It might stink...I can't write action. .:was supposed to post this two days ago:. Sorry for the delay.

Thank you for the review- **GemmaniGirl**

Review or PM or Flame.


	36. To The Future I Must Walk

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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To The Future I Must Walk

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Kouichi let out a frustrated breath. _Why? Why? This isn't fair. Why?_ A groan escaped him. _It isn't fair_.

"Life never is," he heard Mr. Saito say from beside him.

"You owe me a _lot_ of explanations," Kouichi muttered.

Marise laughed, "I don't owe you anything, Kouichi. You should be grateful for the information I volunteered."

The more Kouichi thought about it, the more he realized it was true. Looking down, he mumbled, "But nothing adds up."

"It shouldn't. Lucemon's particularly annoying in that sense." Marise allowed silence to drift in as he sighed and looked around. "I haven't been out much. The bookstore has been closed for how long?" Chuckling, he added, "Thank you for returning the keys, by the way."

Kouichi just shrugged.

Still smiling as he quickened his pace to walk beside Kouichi, Marise said, "I suppose you know what happened to the egg?"

"No."

"Quite right. Someone took it," he informed the boy.

"It doesn't matter. This isn't your business," Kouichi returned coldly, grabbing the lapels of his jacket and yanking them closer as he did. If anything, it hurt to speak this way to someone he admired so much, but he couldn't help but be bitter.

Sighing, Marise came to a stop. "I suppose I should tell you about your brother..." murmured the man, sounding tired.

Kouichi stopped. He did his best to keep calm, taking several breaths and telling himself, _Just don't scream, just don't scream_. Quietly, he said, "I don't want to hear it. It's not like you owe me anything, anyway." He noted the bitter tone in his own voice and decided it was the last straw. Clenching his fists, Kouichi broke into a run, not bothering to look behind him, not bothering to look in front of him.

There was a light morning drizzle, and the sky was still dark, taking on a purple to black shade. Kouichi wasn't sure if the wetness on his cheeks was rain or tears, and he didn't care much. Sometime after five minutes or so, he stopped running altogether, and stood unmoving in the middle of the street, gazing at the stoplight. It was stupid of him, he knew, but Kouichi figured it didn't matter.

A honk snapped him out of his daze, and Kouichi finished crossing the street. _Way to go, Kouichi. Only you could be an idiot like that_. He resisted the urge to scream and continued to walk. Every so often he would quicken his pace and tighten his fists as the thought of the destruction of the Digital World came to him; or the disappearance of Lowemon, as Duskmon was already gone; or even the thought of an unhatched Lobomon, who ready to hatch.

_This isn't fair_. _Why should they have to suffer for our well being?_ Kouichi let out a shaky breath and stopped in his tracks again, leaning against the familiar glass window of the bookstore. "Duskmon, you must have known another way, right?" he whispered, looking down at his shoes. "That must have been why you weren't with Kanaye or Naoko or...or...with _Lucemon_. Please, tell me there's another way..." Kouichi sank to the floor, bringing in his knees and folding his arms on top. _I sound desperate_, he thought, letting out a half-hearted laugh.

Kouichi looked up, startled by some sound or another. "What-Kouji...?" he exclaimed, looking up to see his brother gazing down at him with lightless eyes.

Slightly, Kouji inclined his head.

The older twin scrambled to his feet. Looking at his brother, he felt the familiar feeling that woke him up return, but pushed it away. "You weren't home, and I had no idea where you went. We just had a meeting at Mr. Saito's. Apparently we have to destroy the Digital World."

Perhaps he should have known then, when Kouji didn't answer. Mistaking the silence for sorrow, Kouichi looked down at his feet and continued in a broken voice, "It's not fair. They all have to go, just because of some stupid excess Chaos. You should probably go talk to Saito. You missed everything..." Kouichi looked up again, noticing his brother was holding something in his arms. Startled, he asked in amazement, "You have the egg...?"

Still, Kouji remained silent. A strange smile crept on his lips as he brought the egg towards his chest.

"Kouji...?" Kouichi choked, watching in confusion as the egg faded within his brother. His senses became alert, and he took a step back warily. Eyes glued to the other boy, Kouichi slipped a hand into his pocket but stopped.

Out of nowhere, Kouji pulled out a bokuto out of nowhere and pointed it at his brother. A sick grin appeared on his face; it was as if he was sneering at Kouichi. But his eyes were what startled Kouichi the most.

_Why didn't I see this before?_ Weakly, Kouichi withdrew his hand out of his pocket and took another step back. _This isn't Kouji...this is someone else. I can't fight him,_ he realized, feeling the disgust rise to his mouth. He fought it back down, barely dodging as Kouji launched an attack in his direction. "Kouji, stop!" he found himself shouting, though he knew it was useless.

As another attack came towards him, Kouichi dodged it and kicked his brother into a nearby crossing sign. _Sorry, Kouji_, he thought as he did, then turned around and, not daring to look behind him or in front of him, ran for all his legs were worth.

-------------------------------------

Kako stared at the empty plate before her, half-glaring, half-contemplating. "Mmm...I...will _not_," she muttered with great difficulty. Several seconds later, she growled, "Shut up, I _will_."

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Hideki muttered, "It starts. _Again_." The others just nodded glumly in agreement.

"Yes. _No_. Yes! No. Yes no yes-AUGH, WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE! THIS IS STUPID!" Kako yelled, accidentally sending the plate flying to crash against the wall. Seeing this, she winced. _Good thing Dad's out_.

Hideki's eyes narrowed on his sister. "_Kako_," he snapped, "that's coming out of _your_ bank, I'll have you know."

She stuck her tongue out at him. Folding her arms, Kako said, "But you still owe me the money from all those bets!"

"Which was negated by that final bet in which I said I didn't have to pay any of the dues if you made another bet. And you _made another bet_," Hideki told her with a smug grin.

Scowling, Kako muttered, "Not my fault. You cheated me." She sighed and leaned back against the couch, shutting her eyes. She had a headache from trying to be angry with Kouichi instead of thinking of the destruction of the Digital World. So far, it was working, but at a great cost to her sanity.

"Hey, did you ever hear the joke about-" Junpei started, a faltering smile on his face.

Just as gloomy as the rest, Takuya looked up. The goggle boy let out a sigh and shook his head. "Junpei, give up. It won't work. Besides, I really don't want you to go crazy. Just admit it. You're as sad as the rest of us," he said. He looked back down at his feet, at a loss for any more words.

Beside him, Tomoki spoke up, "But we have to try! Our being...this..._down_ isn't going to make anything right! We have to think up some other way, or at least be happy so they have a good last impression of us!" The boy stood up. "Come on, are you all going to make them feel bad about this? Let's at least _try_ to think of another way!" he cried, facing all of his friends.

Izumi forced a smile. She stood up and gazed at her feet. "Y-You know, that's a bit dramatic, Tomoki, but you have the right idea." The smile faded and returned, soft, sad, but not forced. "I don't...want to let them down. We won't be fighting at our best if we're like this. Tomoki's right. We should be thinking of another way, not sulking," whispered Izumi, turning her head to Takuya, who was to her right.

Letting out a laugh, Takuya leaned back against the couch and folded his arms. He stuck out his tongue and remarked, "I never thought _I'd_ be a quitter. My bad. Alright! Junpei, you're all brains!" He turned to his left and pointed at the older boy.

Sulking even more, Junpei muttered, "Thanks for putting me in the spotlight. I don't have _all_ the brilliant ideas, you know."

Laughing unnecessarily, the other boy nodded. "Right! I know that! It's _brainstorm_ time!" Takuya exclaimed, shooting his fist into the air.

Before they could all sit back down to start thinking, Hideki let out a horrified yell. "I can't believe it! NO, RAI MISSED IT ALL!" He sank down beside his sister, crying. Suddenly looking up, he commented, "Wait, that's good. She didn't hear me tell those two to shut up." Letting out a laugh, Hideki waved to everyone staring at him. "Sorry, false alarm."

With all his might, Takuya glared at Hideki. Something inside him snapped and he felt the corner of his mouth twitch. He couldn't help it. He burst out laughing. It didn't help that everyone else was joining him, laughing aloud as well.

For those precious few seconds, the world was free from any chaos.

When the laughter subsided, Izumi turned to her cousin with an amused look. "So, what was up with Kouichi and 'it'?" she asked, using air quotes and raising her eyebrows.

"I...it...well, it's a long story," Kako mumbled. She lowered her eyes to the floor and let out a sigh.

"We have time."

Reluctantly, Kako lifted her head up. Another sigh escaped her and she looked away from Izumi's eyes. "In Hawaii, Kouichi and I discovered, with Piximon's help, an egg. Turns out it was Lobomon's egg. Yesterday, in the middle of lunch, it was shining, and then it started bouncing. This entire time, Kouichi trusted me to keep the egg safe, but it was bouncing in the middle of the night, and the doorbell rang, and..." Her voice drifted off into another miserable sigh.

Silence ensued and it was several seconds later that Kako realized everyone had been paying attention.

"Lobomon?" Takuya suddenly blurted, gazing hurtfully at the girl. "And you couldn't tell us?" Pouting, the goggle boy exclaimed, "I thought I was trusted!"

Snickering, Junpei added, "As trusted as a poisonous two headed snake."

"I _heard_ that."

Izumi just shook her head. "Ignore them, Kako," she told the other girl, smiling encouragingly. "I'm sure you had your reasons. But if we had Lobomon's egg, maybe we could have had the upper hand..._somehow_." Her eyes widened for a split second before returning to normal. After that, Izumi didn't speak to anyone, but murmured aloud occasionally for her own benefit, pointing randomly in the air and looking thoughtful.

In the meantime, the boys were bored of trying to think up ideas. Nothing seemed to be working. They weren't even sure there was an alternate solution to their problem. Minutes ticked by, countless times they shifted positions, groaned, sighed, hit their foreheads, kicked at the ground, but no ideas came. In the end, Junpei had fallen off the couch, Tomoki and Izumi were sitting normally, and Takuya was counting on his head to support the rest of him on the couch, eyes shut and legs folded into a meditating position.

Hideki had grown restless, and Kako was still nodding off, fighting against the unconsciousness that threatened to overcome her. Finally, the young man stood on his feet and yelled, "Alright, I'm sick of this stupid attempt at finding another way! Can we _at least_ play videogames and think at the same time?"

Startled by this given information, Takuya toppled over to the side, just missing Tomoki's head with his feet. He quickly scrambled onto his feet. "Videogames! You have videogames?" Eagerly, he awaited an answer, looking as a hungry hyena would (or so Kako thought as she looked at him through bleary eyes).

"DUH."

"I'M SAVED! I even brought my memory cards!" Takuya babbled, engaging in a lively conversation with Hideki about videogames. Sure enough, Tomoki and Junpei joined in.

_Boys will be boys_, Kako thought with a small smile. _I wonder if Kouichi ever finished any game I gave him_. She giggled slightly at the thought, but it came out more drunkenly than she intended. The weight of her eyelids was unbearable. Slowly, her consciousness began to slip away...

Or it would have, had it not been for the incessant pounding at the door. "Open up already!" a familiar and impatient voice shouted.

_That's not Dad_. _He's in the back_. Kako sat up and frowned. Her blood was as good as ice when her mind cleared enough to recognize the voice. She dreaded opening the door with every step she took towards it. Strangely enough, she didn't have to. After opening the door, she discovered it shut seconds later anyway, with Kouichi, breathing hard, leaning and sinking down against it. Something told her there was something wrong.

_Why can't I place this?_ It all seemed so familiar.

"Th-the egg," Kouichi breathed, "Kouji has it."

"Oh. That's...good," Kako finished lamely.

Scowling, Kouichi rose to his feet. "Considering he tried to attack me, that he absorbed the egg, and he's out there with a weapon...?" His glare directed itself to the door.

She stared at him for several seconds. "You're _joking_," Kako blurted, taking several steps back. A fear overwhelmed her, and for a minute, she believed that Kouji would burst through the door and kill them all. _Damn overactive imagination_, she thought, shivering.

Kouichi locked the door and looked up at Kako. There was a look in his eyes, one she knew well, but couldn't quite place. Sorrow, desperation, forgiveness...confusion; as if the weight of the world was held in his eyes. In a quiet voice, he told her, "It's not a joke. Whatever this is, it's starting, and I don't think Kouji's going to be on our side." He awaited her reaction, but realized Kako was staring at him. "Well? Get your dad or something!" scowled the boy, brushing past her and walking to the living room.

Instead of following him, Kako made her way to the backyard through the kitchen. By this time, the sky was streaked with gray, and there was a gloom that made it seem as if even the flowers were wilting. "I didn't mean it," she said softly, walking up to the nearest rose bush. Brushing her fingers against the petals, Kako repeated, "I didn't mean it. Is he mad at me? This is my fault, isn't it?"

As if to answer her, the petal she touched broke away from the rose, and was gently carried into her palm. Shutting her eyes, Kako cupped her hands, placing one on top of the other to carry the petal without harm. She brought her hands towards her, opening them when they were at her eyes' level. "Please...be safe," she whispered, watching as the petal flew off in the breeze that blew harsher with each second that passed.

She wasn't sure at the least to whom.

-------------------------------------

Izumi sat down quietly on the couch, straining her ears to see if she could hear who was at the door. She was positive it was Kouichi, but Kako went to check, and she figured the two would appreciate a moment alone. It was when Kouichi returned without her cousin that Izumi began to worry.

She looked up with a start as he entered the living room. "Kouichi-"

"What...are...you all doing?" Kouichi rasped, trying to even out his breathing by taking deep breaths.

The tone of his voice was what worried her the most. "What happened?" she inquired, sitting on the edge of her seat.

Kouichi drifted towards the opposite couch, sitting down in the spot Kako had previously occupied. He spared the details and said bluntly, "Kouji. Egg. Crazy."

Withholding a frustrated cry, Izumi gritted her teeth. "What?" she asked, digging her fingers into the couch.

The details spilled out of Kouichi's mouth faster than she could comprehend. She caught bits of it. "...went for a walk...ran...Kouji near a crosswalk...had the egg...egg...went into him...had a bokuto...tried to attack me...ran," was what it sounded like to her. But the tidbits she heard were enough for her to picture what was going on.

Before Izumi could say anything, Kouichi turned to the boys, who had gathered around Hideki and were listening to his advice for videogames. "Idiots! What are you doing? Don't you _care_ about the Digital World?" he snapped, glaring at them.

The room fell into silence.

Junpei tried to defend himself. "We were just-"

"I _don't_ _care_. Do something useful! Kouji would do something, but _no_, he had to go and be...be..." Kouichi let out a growl and slammed his fist downward into the space beside him.

A frown appeared on the girl's face. Izumi stood up and murmured, "We care, Kouichi. Don't _ever_ question that. I don't know what happened to Kouji, but you can't forget that we're still a team. There's six of us, five without Kouji. I don't know _what's_ wrong with you, but if you in _any_ way took that out on Kako..." Izumi drew a breath. "What _is_ wrong with you? Is it Kouji?" she asked.

Exhaling sharply, Kouichi shook his head. "I don't know, Izumi," he confessed in a weak voice. "He's...his eyes were...it's like he was..."

"Possessed?" a softer voice offered.

Kouichi stood up and looked at Marise. Guiltily, he looked at his feet and mumbled, "About earlier, Mr. Saito, I..."

Marise waved a dismissive hand. "That matters little. Yes...Kouichi, I thought you should know." A small, dry smile lit his face. "Your brother is...well, he is, in all technicalities, possessed," the man admitted.

Again, the room was swallowed by silence. Kouichi stiffly turned his gaze towards the general direction of the door. "Then..." A deathly pale color washed over him. "N-no..."

A chilling scream of pain echoed throughout the house.

-------------------------------------

Kanaye calmly took a sip of tea, then placed the china cup down on the table. "It will be a few more hours, and the Area we've created will take full effect. With the absence of the spirits in the Digital World, Lucemon made it his top priority to collect his best digimon in that one spot. Perhaps we should lift the cover now?" he suggested, meeting Rai's eyes.

She lazily stirred her tea with a small spoon, gazing at him all the while. _Lift the cover...?_ Leaving the spoon in its place, Rai sat up straight and nodded. "It would be wise...but I'm afraid of what the government might do. They'd be wasting troops, for one. Nevertheless, it would give the people _some_ warning. W-wait!" she exclaimed as Kanaye snapped his fingers.

"Done. Too late, Ophanimon." The victorious smirk was replaced by one of curiosity. "Shouldn't you be with Kimura and company? I'm sure those idiots will need your help about now," he commented.

Laughing, Rai retorted, "They've got Hideki. He'll use his brain. It'll be fine." She went back to stirring her tea.

Kanaye cleared his throat. "Ignoring your cell phone?" He rose an eyebrow.

She rolled her eyes and took the cell phone out of her pocket. Flipping it open, she answered with a drawl. "Hello?"

"H-Hey...Rai...want to help us?" There was a nervous laugh.

_Hideki_, Rai thought, biting back a groan. In an attempt to sound enthusiastic, she exclaimed, "Hideki...! We were just talking about you..." The enthusiasm faded quickly. _Oh screw it, I'm not doing this_. "What do you want?" she asked impatiently.

"Well you see we were all just fine trying to think up ways to not destroy the Digital World and then suddenly twerp one comes in and yells at us all because we were slacking and apparently Kouji is possessed or loco or something and at the moment he's at our door and trying to break it down. Hi, Rai. How was your day? Are you free? Because we could use some advice at the moment," Hideki whimpered.

_That...big...baby_. She cursed to herself and ignored Kanaye's look of amusement. "I'll be right there...stupid baby," she muttered, hanging up and pocketing her cell phone. "Yeah...that was Hideki...apparently he can't take care of himself. Oh, yeah, and there's something about Kouji going loco and attacking."

"Thought so."

"You knew about Kouji, too?"

"Yes. It's been in Lucemon's book for a long time."

Rai huffed and crossed her arms. "You could have _told_ us."

He gave her a grin. "I'm _supposed_ to be on Lucemon's side. Handicaps vary," he told her.

"I guess," the biology teacher muttered, standing up. "You'll be going, too?"

"Yes. Ai will be...suspicious." Kanaye pressed his lips together and tried to hide his annoyance.

Snickering, Rai made her way to the door, Kanaye right behind her. "You aren't so bad, kid. Good luck with getting her off your back. And...it _might_ help to know that we'll probably be at Marise's house the entire day. Just in case, say, you have the _time_ to _drop by?_" she suggested, giving him a meaningful look.

Kanaye smirked. "I'll keep that in mind."

From outside the apartment, he watched her run off. Shivering from the cold, Kanaye started his own journey back home.

A part of him longed to go elsewhere. _Maybe...when this is over, I'll visit Mom_. Resolved, Kanaye quickened his pace.

"You're going the wrong way, Kanaye," someone scowled.

Lazily, Kanaye replied, "So what if I'm taking the long way? It's not like any of you care." He stopped all movement forward and whipped his head in the direction of the speaker. "Fujitaka." They acknowledged each other with a prolonged inclination of their heads.

An impatient sigh startled them out of their staring contest. Under her breath, Naoko muttered, "Oh for the love of-Fujita! Hurry up! We don't have all day."

"What were you doing here?" Fujitaka sneered at Kanaye, ignoring the girl beside him.

Calmly, Kanaye replied, "When it's your business, I'll tell you. In case you haven't noticed, Mercurymon, _I'm_ the leader, despite the fact that you're one of the stupid legendary warriors. If you have a problem, duke it out with Agunimon and take over _his_ squad." The smirk went hidden as Fujitaka scowled.

Naoko sensed the heightened tension in the air. Pushing aside Fujitaka, she snapped, "Lucemon ordered us to prepare, _oh wise leader_. Are you coming or not?"

Kanaye shrugged. "As I said, I'm taking the long way. Does it matter?" he inquired.

"Yes."

Suppressing the urge to curse, Kanaye pushed Fujitaka out of his way and, with the two right behind him, ran the rest of the way. The sooner this was over, the better.

-------------------------------------

"It's not that bad. Come on, there's been worse," Kako commented, swallowing as she gazed at the boy before her. Hearing Kouichi's scream, she had come inside to find him staring at the space in front of him unblinkingly, not moving, not talking, just staring. It frightened her to see him in that state, and what was worse...

..._no one seemed to care. They just left him like this_. _They don't think I can help him, do they?_ Kako whimpered, squeezing her eyes shut and sitting beside Kouichi to rest her head on the arm of the couch. She barely touched her forehead to the couch when the sound of a door opening startled her. "Kouichi-" she started, but stopped when she realized who came in.

An overwhelming joy surged through her, but she didn't get up in time before Hideki ran forward, grabbing Rai's hand. "Don't worry, I'll save you!" he declared, gazing at Rai with determined eyes.

Silence.

Brushing Hideki away, Rai walked over to Kako. "Where's everyone else?" she inquired.

"Outside...for the most part staring and dodging while Kouji attacks," the girl replied. "But Rai-"

The lady let out an impatient sigh. Pacing, she muttered, "That's as good as standing under a falling tree branch. Why aren't they attacking?"

Smiling, Kako answered, "They're all scared silly, and it's really just Kouji." The smile faltered. "And...I guess they don't want to hurt him," she added softly, careful not to look in Kouichi's direction.

Rai let out a curse. "Where's your dad?"

"Kitchen," Hideki interrupted, sending Rai a look only they seemed to understand. In turn, she glared at him and the two erupted in a conversation of hushed whispers that were incomprehensible to Kako from where she sat.

Beside her, Kouichi let out a hollow laugh. "Kouji...with the egg," he whispered.

Kako jumped. Eyes wide, she looked at him, frantic. Beginning to panic, she stuttered, "K-Kouichi!"

"No...be quiet." Kouichi, whose head had been bowed to stare at his feet, looked up with eyes gleaming with hatred. "Just be quiet."

She scowled. _No wonder they just left him_, she thought, glaring coldly at him. "Listen, and listen well, okay? I'm _not_ going to _ever_ talk to a..._loser_ like you if you're going to do something like this! This is _your_ brother we're talking about! Why is it that Takuya and everyone else have to fight him, and _not you_?" She looked at him, expectant for an answer.

Kouichi shook his head. "Kouji...with the egg," he said again, louder this time. "That's not my brother."

"To _hell_ with that, Kouichi! Since the beginning of the year, any time Kouji's done something stupid, that's all you can say. '_That's not my brother_,'" she mimicked. Sneering, she added, "And it doesn't take a genius to notice you always sound proud or amused. Face it, Kouichi. You're afraid." She sent him a challenging glare, which was met with a tired look. Surprise fluttered through her eyes, but she made sure to keep her face.

Standing up, Kouichi looked at his feet and murmured, "I know I'm afraid. It's sickening. They say the only thing to fear is fear itself, but I'm afraid of that and much more." He gazed at Kako. "About earlier...I...I didn't _mean_ it. Or...or maybe I did." A frustrated look overcame him. "I can't explain it, Kako. I didn't want to do that. I know I hurt you, I-" He stopped, clenching his fists as he did. Voice lodged in his throat, Kouichi looked at her with a tearing face, as if trying to say something.

A forced smile appeared on her lips. Standing up, Kako covered his mouth with her hand and murmured, "Go fight, and we'll see how great your apology is."

"Thank you," Kouichi whispered.

She shook her head and watched as he ran out the door. Softly, so only she could hear, Kako murmured, "You're the one that did this. Everything you accomplish is _you_."

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Sorry to cut it short, action is next chapter. Oops, bad prediction.

Thank you for the _REVIEWS_- **GemmaniGirl, RukiMinamoto, x.XWeirdxnxWiseX.x**

XP Crazy catcher uppers. It means a lot to me. Especially now. .:stupidly messed up a notepad and deleted it, thereby deleting all fiction press ideas:. Your reviews really helped cheer me up.

Review or PM or Flame.


	37. Eraba Yashi Kotobuki, Zutto!

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Eraba Yashi Kotobuki...Zutto!

-------------------------------------

"Move," Kouichi muttered, shutting the front door behind him. His eyes gleamed as he walked between Agunimon and Kazemon to enter a sort of circle his digivolved friends had formed around his brother. They narrowed.

Kouji smirked in his direction and sneered, "I assume you've got something up your sleeve. Or are you just going to stare at me and keep me cooped up, like these idiots?" His voice was strangely cold, and distant.

Shaking his head, Kouichi replied, "Does it matter? What do you want?"

"Does it matter?" the boy returned mockingly.

_Brother or no...he's annoying_. Kouichi twitched. "You...are...getting on my nerves," he spat.

"The baby can talk."

"That's it!" Without warning, Kouichi drew out his D-Tector, withdrawing his sword, then throwing jacket and D-Tector over Agunimon. "Not even _Kouji_ was this immature!" he growled, getting into a defensive position.

It was a wise choice.

Kouji made the first move, drawing the bokuto out of nowhere. It flashed before Kouichi's eyes, and he barely had time to bring his blade up to block the downward strike. In retaliation, he swung his sword out to catch his brother's torso, but Kouji leaped back, grinning.

"Slow," he said, before charging in again, aiming to thrust through Kouichi.

The adrenaline rushed, and Kouichi rolled to the side, quickly scrambling onto his feet. Their strikes were true, but their defense was equally strong. Neither seemed to be gaining anything, nor losing anything. It was an equal match, and Kouichi desperately sought a way to break the stalemate.

Almost blindly, he lashed his sword out, knocking the bokuto out of his brother's hands. With that done, he slammed the blade down on the weapon, hoping to break through the wood. _Why won't it break?_ Kouichi's breath hitched in his throat. Kouji took a step towards the bokuto. Instinctively, Kouichi kicked it to the side and aimed the tip of his blade at his brother's throat, although it was several inches away.

He took several breaths, in hope of calming the rush that had run through him. "Slow," Kouichi echoed his brother's previous words. "Slow. You said I was slow...but what about you?" A grim smile lit his face.

To his surprise, Kouji just laughed. When the laughter subsided into chuckles and less, he took a step forward and pushed aside the blade, which fell out of Kouichi's hands and onto the ground with a clatter. "You don't have the heart to kill me," the boy scoffed, stepping towards the older twin.

Kouichi nearly choked, seeing his brother before him. What surprised him even more was the hazy image behind his brother. He leaned forward to get a closer look, and as he did, felt Kouji drive his fist into his stomach. Coughing, Kouichi stepped back and fell to the ground, gasping for air.

"And what's more..." A smirk. "You're slow."

A haze overcame his vision, but Kouichi could make out everyone rushing towards him to see if he was alright. _Kouji_, he thought furiously. _What about Kouji? I don't matter, just get him!_ He wanted so badly to say that out loud, but all that could come out of his mouth was groans of pain and gasps for breath.

He managed to sit up with great difficulty. The first thing that saw made him cry out in pain. The hazy image behind his brother was all too familiar, especially from the back. It wasn't Kouji that Kouichi saw walking away, bokuto in hand, but none other than Duskmon.

-------------------------------------

"Are _any_ of you listening?" Kanaye growled, driving his fist into the wall. His eyes narrowed on the people in front of him. "Shut. Up." His voice was quiet.

Things quickly fell into a dead silence, and all eyes were on him. Yes, this what he had wanted and he finally had it. It was strangely sickening.

He cleared his throat. Sweat beaded on his forehead, underneath the hairs of his head. "As you know, Lucemon has called us to prepare," he said in a soft voice. That fact didn't detract from the attention he was receiving. He was positive they would take in his every word. "Because of this..." Kanaye drew a breath. "All of you are dismissed," he finally uttered, keeping his eyes glued towards the legendary warriors at hand. From behind them, he could see Ai jump to her feet in protest. "Now _leave_."

Kanaye could have cried out happily, seeing them do as he asked. It was the first time he felt as he wanted: calm, vicious, lethal..._respected_. Very soon, the room was empty, save the four seats on his left. "You four...stay here," he muttered, walking to the door and kicking it shut.

"What's the last job, Captain?" He felt Naoko's eyes regarding him with amusement.

The question was returned with a smile. "How very perceptive of you," he murmured, turning around. An excited glint was shown in his eyes. Kanaye walked briskly to the podium where he had stood behind before and kept his eyes glued on them as he said, voice lowered in case of eavesdroppers, "As you know, Lucemon expects us to prepare for his takeover. _However_..."

"We have other plans?" As Kanaye shot her a glare, Naoko grinned. It was a bad habit of hers to guess what he intended to say. Especially considering she had caught him in the act a multitude of times, he wasn't all that surprised as much as irritated that she knew this.

_Is this why no one listened to me before?_ Kanaye hid a smile and instead growled in annoyance. "Yes, we have other plans. We'll be aiding the other legendary warriors. That is, on a majority vote," he added quickly, noticing the stares he received. It unnerved him greatly. He exhaled sharply. "Well?"

Ritsuo and Naoko rose their hands. Kanaye had expected this would happen many times before. Although they could put up a good act at being evil, neither Ritsuo nor Naoko wanted the job they had, and would have switched sides the first chance they got. Ai and Fujitaka on the other hand...

Snorting, Fujitaka sat back in his chair and folded his arms, glaring crossly at Kanaye. He suddenly sneered as a thought passed through his head, "What, Kanaye? Afraid of losing? You just don't have the guts!" Triumphant, he held his chin up and waited for the counter.

"Come off it, Fujita," Naoko murmured, hitting her boyfriend's shoulder. "I _know_ you want this too."

Much to Kanaye's amusement, the boy began to sputter. _Naturally_, _he's going to go wherever she does_. _That leaves Ai_...

While everyone had been paying attention to Kanaye, Ai had decided to stand up and place her hands on her hips. Compared to her, Fujitaka was nothing. "So...?" he said quietly, gazing straight at her.

Ai let out a hiss, reminding Kanaye very much of a snake. "You're all fools," she growled, backing away from everyone, heading towards the door. "Lucemon's wrath will be upon you, and don't expect _me_ to save you idiots!" All eyes were on her as she threw the door open and stormed out.

_Now_ Kanaye was worried. A grim look shadowed his face as he turned to the remaining three. "Well then, I suggest we use this time to meet up with the others." He stopped. Something wasn't right. Letting out a silent curse, Kanaye shrugged the feeling away and motioned towards the door. "Move _out_."

-------------------------------------

She stared at him quietly. "You did fine."

"It wasn't enough," he returned with a hint of bitterness. He wished they had just _stayed_ there instead of rushing towards him. A few more seconds, and he would have had Kouji sitting with them at this moment, arguing about some idiotic moment or another.

"You did fine," she repeated firmly, turning away from him.

Before he could restrain himself, his voice rose. "It wasn't-" He stopped. Breath hitched in his throat, Kouichi clenched his fists, turning his head to the side as she looked over her shoulder to glance at him.

"Kouichi, you're making the kitchen a pretty dreary place. Go with everyone else. Maybe then you'll cheer up." Kako pressed her lips together and looked in front of her as she continued to raid the cabinets for anything edible. "Say...Kouichi?" she suddenly murmured, dropping her hands to her side.

_Stupid idiot_. _Izumi warned you_, Kouichi thought, mentally kicking himself. _Why did you do that? She'll hate you forever now_.

Kako bit her lip. "Kouichi, the diary mentioned...he said...well, I've been _thinking_ about us. I want to know. Where do I stand?" She risked a look over her shoulder.

Kouichi was expressionless. It was his usual poker face.

She hated it.

_What...?_ A small smile lit Kouichi's face, curling into a smirk. _Where...? Good question_. "Right in front of me," he whispered, taking a few steps forward as she turned around.

Angrily, she pushed him back when he tried to step closer to her. "I'm serious!" she insisted. Tears were brimming in her eyes, though Kako did her best to hold them back. _Stupid jerk_, she yelled in her head, but did nothing otherwise.

For a second, Kouichi could have sworn his arms moved of their own accord. Very soon, he felt himself comply, finally coming to a conclusion. _So it's true_. Kouichi just smiled and pulled her into an embrace, whispering into her ear, "So am I. You stand right in front of me." He bent down, catching her lips in a kiss, a movement which felt almost robotic, if not automatic.

"How very touching."

Kouichi pulled away, slightly annoyed. He turned his head to look over his shoulder, where Kanaye stood, smirking. "Kanaye, we were expecting you," he said calmly. _What's that loser doing here?_ _I was enjoying the moment_, the boy thought, resisting the urge to lunge at Kanaye there and then.

"You forgot to invite me to the party," Kanaye laughed.

"But you see, we never did. We knew you'd come _anyway_. No one would invite _you_ to their wedding."

Kako choked. _Wedding?_ she thought.

Kanaye paused to observe the look on Kako's face. "I _do_ believe we scared her," he said pointedly.

"I agree. Why are you here, though? Moreover, _how_ did you get _in_?" Kouichi asked, twitching nervously. It was incredibly unnerving to have a _polite_ conversation with the enemy for a second time.

The second boy cleared his throat and spun around. "Actually...see for yourself," he mumbled almost incomprehensibly.

Kako jumped. "What?" she exclaimed, racing out of the kitchen and pushing aside the two boys in the process. At the sight in the living room she shrieked, "_What_ is this?"

"People eating?" Kanaye suggested.

He and Kouichi made their way to the living room, stopping behind Kako. Kouichi shook his head. "This is weird. But what...?" He looked to Kanaye in askance.

Rolling his eyes, Kanaye waved a lazy hand towards Rai, who was glaring at a pouting Hideki. "Ask her, please. I've lost my breath."

In front of him, Kako whirled around. Both hands dug themselves into his shirt to yank the collar up. The entire action looked incredibly strange, the girl being shorter. "You'll be losing _more_ if you don't explain what happened!" Kako snapped.

Kanaye was hardly worried. Turning to Kouichi, he muttered, "I'm _so_ sorry."

"I'll live," Kouichi muttered, rubbing the back of his neck as he looked at the two awkwardly.

If Kanaye had been worried, he was saved from Kako's pathetic attempts at strangling by Marise, who descended down the stairs at stopped at the last step, staring at his daughter with a raised eyebrow. "Kako," he reprimanded, "leave the guests alone."

"GUESTS?" she shrieked, pushing Kanaye away and staring wide-eyed at her father.

For the first time, Kouichi saw the makings of a scowl on Marise's face. It surprised him greatly. The man waved an impatient hand towards his daughter. "Yes, now everyone have a seat," he ordered, continuing to walk towards his seat.

Everyone obliged, dropping their food onto their plates and spilling off the couches onto the floor in the case of limited space.

Marise's eyes gleamed with excitement. In a hushed voice, he told them, "I'm sure you're all very confused by the arrivals of Kanaye and the others, but that's hardly anything to worry about, because with Kanaye comes the knowledge of the activation points of the Area and the possibility to secure these points. If we succeed in securing these points, we're sure to have an easier time with battling Lucemon."

There was a silence until someone asked out of the blue, "How?"

"It will be easier to collapse the Area after Lucemon's defeat."

"_How_?"

"You'll see."

"HOW?" Kouichi found himself snapping, irritated with the obvious avoidance of the questions. Quieter, he mumbled, "We deserve an explanation. At least, _they_ do..." He waved a hand to the others behind him.

The alien scowl was back on Marise's face. "You. Will. See. When. You. Need. To," he said, pausing between each word. He clapped his hands together and smiled again. "Which is why our first mission will be to secure these areas. Once this is done, we can focus our attack at the core of the Area," he told them. "We'll be sending our three groups of three to each point. To our very own Japan point, Junpei, Fujitaka, Ritsuo; the sea point, Izumi, Naoko, Tomoki; the Hawaii point, Kouichi, Takuya, Shinya. I suggest you eat up now," he added lightly. "It's going to be one _long_ battle."

-------------------------------------

Marise had been gone for a good hour or so, Kanaye observed, and the room had long since erupted into a heated debate about the uses of what seemed like a pointless securing.

_They obviously don't understand_, Kanaye thought, _the importance of this_. _I suppose I should tell them, but_...

He sighed and leaned back into his seat, shutting his eyes and listening to the loud cacophony that met his ears.

"I'm telling you, this is just _stupid_," Fujitaka snapped, pessimistic as usual. "I know _everything_ about Lucemon's plans-"

"As much as Kanaye decided to tell you," Naoko added.

"-and securing the points will do _nothing_."

Before anyone else could give their input, Kako snapped, "Yeah, what do _you_ know? For all _anyone_ knows, Kanaye could have lied to you! And my dad does _not_ lie-"

There was the sound of someone clearing their throat. All eyes drifted towards Hideki.

"R-right...?" Kako asked, twitching.

Clearing his throat again, Hideki said, "Dad doesn't _lie_. He tends to..._stretch_ details, but he doesn't _lie_...I mean, sure, he fabricates a few details, but he doesn't-"

"HE LIES?"

Kanaye's eyes snapped open.

"No, Kako. Lie is a _very_ offensive term." Hideki reprimanded his sister in a stern tone. "He _stretches details_."

Groaning, Kako lay back on the floor with her arms spread to the side. "Great. Who knows _what_ he lied about. Go figure," she muttered. _No wonder Hideki is so strange_.

Kouichi snapped, "That isn't what matters here. Marise wasn't lying. Why would he lie about something like _this_? He's as bad as Hideki, maybe even _worse_..." At this point, he avoided all eye contact with Hideki. "But it makes sense to secure the points. What if Lucemon could expand with the control of these points? What would we do then?" He held his breath, preparing a rebuttal in the back of his head in the case of any arguments. There were none, except a cold glare from Fujitaka, which was mirrored back to him on Kouichi's face.

Noticing the awkward tension, Takuya let out a nervous laugh. "So...why aren't you guys with Lucemon anymore?" he asked Kanaye conversationally.

The boy shrugged, pushing his hair out of his eyes. This did nothing to avert the accumulating gazes focused on him. Scowling, Kanaye muttered, "Lucemon was a goddamn pain. I'm not so undignified as _Ai_ as to stick with an uncivilized demon like him." He suddenly glared, and everyone looked away from him.

"Lover's spat," Kako whispered quietly.

A little ways away, Junpei winced. "Ouch."

There was a snigger from Ritsuo. "You have _no_ idea," he told Junpei, and began relating the tale of Ai's ferocity when Kanaye announced his plan.

Kanaye's eyes narrowed on the boy. _Traitor_.

The entire room burst into a series of mini conversations. By the staircase were Hideki and Rai, seated on the last step. Kanaye sat where Marise had, gazing at the sight before him. To his right, Fujitaka, Naoko, and Ritsuo were seated. Junpei was on the floor to the left of Ritsuo, the connection of the two couches. On the left couch were Takuya, Izumi, Kako, and Tomoki crawling around randomly, obviously unable to hide his excitement.

What caught Kanaye's eyes the most was Kouichi. Still locked in a glaring battle against Fujitaka, he sat to Kako's right, on the floor, unmoving save his arm, which steadily brought the food to his mouth. Fujitaka was doing the very same, speeding up slightly.

_What are they doing_...? Kanaye shook his head, amused by this. The two continued to speed up, not caring it the food fell out of their chopsticks or onto the side of their face. The bowl was lifted just below eye-level, tilted towards their mouth. The food poured in.

"I'LL TAKE MORE!" the two shouted, holding out their bowls. Glares were exchanged. They jumped to their feet and raced towards the kitchen. At the threshold of the kitchen, however, both boys rammed their heads against each other and fell back onto the floor.

Ignoring this, Takuya shot his hand up into the air and waved it around. "I've got another question!" he exclaimed.

Irritably, Kanaye snapped, "What is it _now_?"

"How do you digivolve?"

"We...have our ways," he replied evasively, leaning back in the chair and smiling widely.

"What?" Takuya bellowed, outraged. "Is that all you're going to say?" He stood up, clenching his fists by his side, and took a step forward, raising one arm as he did.

Izumi immediately dragged the boy back as her cousin ran to check on Fujitaka and Kouichi. "What are you _doing?_" she demanded. With almost no effort at all, she pulled Takuya back into his seat.

The goggle boy just grinned at her as he fell back down. "Well," he commented, rubbing the back of his neck, "I was trying to ask Kouji-like questions. It's harder than it seems, especially if you have to add the after reactions, too."

"Takuya, you're so lame," Tomoki snorted, hopping into the spot beside the goggle boy.

Takuya just laughed. "I know."

-------------------------------------

They had time. A good hour or so. Kouichi eyed the clock wearily. There were so many things he wanted to get done, but Marise had forbidden them to leave the house.

_Who will tell Mom? Then I have to tell her about Kouji_, Kouichi realized, letting out a frustrated sigh. He wanted to _do_ something.

"I...just realized something," Takuya muttered, rolling off the couch and beside Kouichi. A lump formed in the goggle boy's throat. "Uh...Sh-Shinya..."

Kouichi's eyes widened with realization.

"Oh...shoot," the two boys chorused.

Junpei, who had just come out of the kitchen, rose an eyebrow at the two. "What?" he said dumbly.

"Shinya," Takuya said, flustered. "We have to take _Shinya_. Mom would skin me _alive_ if I did!"

"She's skin you alive if she knew about Agunimon. Most probably because you'd have digivolved into Agunimon and she'd have thought Agunimon was a monster who ate you," Kouichi mumbled in turn.

"Hey, she's not _that_ crazy...she's _worse_."

"Takuya!" Izumi cried, rising to her feet.

Miserably looking over his shoulder, Takuya insisted, "It's true! Come on, Izumi. Think about it. We're _doomed_. Thirty minutes till noon and we haven't thought of _any_ way to save the Digital World, for all we know Kanaye might betray us like he did Lucemon, we don't even know if these guys can digivolve, _and I have to work with Shinya of all people_." His said this last part with a hint of bitterness. "Shinya," he continued, "the same boy who..." _Who really hated my guts once_.

"He's your brother."

"It doesn't matter!" Takuya shouted.

The room fell silent.

Letting out a sigh, Kouichi rose to his feet and ran his fingers through his hair. His eyes slipped shut. "Takuya."

"What?" the goggle boy snapped.

"We better get a head start. Getting Shinya, then going to Hawaii...that'll take...a while. But exactly _how_ are we getting to Hawaii? I don't have Velgemon, and...Shinya...w-well, Grumblemon doesn't exactly have wings."

"True..."

Gloomy sighs escaped a few.

With a sigh of her own, Izumi sat down and mumbled, "It would be a lot more easier if we were just in the Digital World again."

Nods followed this statement.

"Yeah...the Digital Worl-" Takuya stopped in mid-sentence, allowing a crazed look to glaze his eyes as he stood up. "OF COURSE!" he exclaimed, slamming a fist in his palm.

Kouichi craned his neck to look up at Takuya. "What's it?" he asked, feeling slightly stupid that he hadn't thought of whatever idea Takuya was about to propose. To reassure himself, he thought, _Then again, it might just be another stupid idea...like the one he had on the Digital World's moon_.

Laughing without reason, Takuya hissed excitedly, "Don't you see? _It would be easier in the Digital World_. Think about it, Kouichi! We only have a few choices."

"Yeah. Rent a jet or swim," Kouichi grumbled under his breath.

Takuya frowned. "Where's your head?" he demanded, lifting his foot and kicking Kouichi's head mercilessly. "I thought you were _smarter_ than Kouji!"

The boy paused to regain his balance. As he tipped over to the side from the hit, he pushed off the floor with an arm and looked back up at Takuya. "Run all this by me again."

Trying to control his anger, Takuya drew a breath between gritted teeth. Slowly, he said, "It would be _easier_ for KaiserLeomon and Grumblemon to travel _in the Digital World_."

_Now I _really _feel stupid_, Kouichi thought glumly, rising to his feet. "But it would depend on the terrain of the Area. Then again...there might be some alternate..." Kouichi trailed off and shook his head. "No. No, this is what we'll do," he said, turning around and looking at everyone else. Junpei, Ritsuo, Fujitaka...you three...you head out first." A bit of a smile returned to his face, and he relaxed. "Then the girls and Tomoki can easily make their way by digivolving. Tomoki just has to ice his way, Naoko's Ranamon...and Izumi can fly. In the meantime, we'll get Shinya." Kouichi drew a breath and looked around the room.

Silence.

"Should we leave now, then?" Junpei asked slowly, blinking and trying to take in what Kouichi had said (very quickly, one might add).

"YES, GET GOING!" Kouichi shouted, glaring at the boy.

There were a few mumbles and scuffles until the first group made it out of the door. Shuddering, Naoko murmured to Kako, "He's so weird..."

The other girl just shrugged. "I agree," she replied simply.

This went unheard by Kouichi. "We'll wait five minutes, and then the next group can leave. I have this bet that no one knows what they're doing," he muttered under his breath.

Takuya rose an eyebrow. "What?"

"Marise won't tell us anything. Maybe he doesn't _know_ anything. Either way...well, _I'm_ not waiting." Kouichi sent a glance towards the clock. "Forget it. Next group, go," he said, staring straight at Tomoki, almost menacingly.

Swallowing, Tomoki nodded and jumped off the couch. _What's with him? And why am I stuck with girls...? Even if it is Izumi_, he thought, wincing as the two girls followed him.

A thought suddenly entered Kanaye's head. "W-wait," he sputtered, rising to his feet.

The door shut, and the remainder of the room (with the exception of Hideki and Rai who were completely oblivious to their surroundings) stared at him. It was odd to see a normally calm Kanaye so flustered, especially for Takuya and Kouichi, as the two boys had constantly been tormented by him in the past.

"What am _I_ supposed to do? I'm not staying here!" snapped Kanaye. He gritted his teeth and drew a breath. "_Especially_ with _her_," he added, pointing to Kako with a shaking finger.

Takuya and Kouichi exchanged glances, each raising an eyebrow. Turning back to Kanaye, they grinned. "What a shame you haven't got a group of three," Takuya snickered.

Chuckling a little, Kouichi finished, "Because then you could head for the heart of the area with Kako screaming all the while."

"HEY!" Kako snapped, throwing a fork in Kouichi's direction. He barely dodged it, letting out a yell as it glided past his left shoulder.

"See what I mean?" Kanaye muttered pointedly.

Kouichi shrugged. "It's better with three if you ask me. Why don't you...uh...amuse Kako in the meantime...like...show off your sword or something," he suggested.

Scowling, Kanaye folded his arms and looked away, glaring at the innocent wall.

"Should we go now?" Takuya asked, looking at Kouichi. All sign of a smile disappeared from his face.

He opened his mouth to answer, but his eyes caught sight of Kako. Shifting nervously, Kouichi turned around and nodded. "Let's...let's just go," he mumbled, racing towards the door.

_What the hell? We all left in the same five minutes_, Takuya thought, scowling as he looked up at the clock. He waved carelessly behind him and yelled, "Have fun!" ignoring the string of curses Kanaye let out at him.

The door shut for the third time in those minutes. Kako stood up and went to pick up the fork she had previously thrown. "Alright," she said with a sigh, "what do you want to do?"

Kanaye averted his eyes to look at her. "So, did that kiss mean anything to you, then?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"You _still_ haven't figured out anything?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Kako repeated again in a firmer voice.

"So was that what the look was about? A 'come back alive so we can talk about this' look?"

"So, what are Lucemon's plans?" Kako asked, turning to look at Kanaye with a pained expression on her face.

The boy shrugged and motioned to the couch. "Shall we take a seat?"

Her eyes regarded him warily. After a few seconds, she asked in the timid voice so unlike her, "Is it that bad...?"

Kanaye shrugged again.

Kako forgot the fork and made her way back to the couch, sitting down in the couch opposite Kanaye. Instead of meeting his eyes, she looked down thoughtfully at the rug.

"Lucemon obviously plans to take over both worlds," she began, "but there's more, right?"

Kanaye nodded. "The 'shadow' system as you call it, has its base in the Chaos of the Digital World. Lucemon plans to conquer all the worlds under the control of the Digital World's Chaos and join all the Chaos for some stupid 'control the universe' plan. He decided to start with Earth," he confirmed.

"Isn't there some other way to stop Chaos...? Other than the destruction of the Digital World...?" Kako's voice was soft and barely audible.

_Speak louder_. _You always used to _yell_ in my ear_, he thought grumpily. After a few seconds of guessing what she said from bits of what he heard, Kanaye replied, "If there's another way, no one has thought of it. There's a larger cost than the destruction of the Digital World in the process of eliminating Chaos." His face darkened.

Kako looked up, surprise evident in her eyes. Breathing slowed, and she waited for him to continue.

"Whoever destroys Chaos...will be destroyed as well."

-------------------------------------

Takuya swallowed and looked behind his shoulder to make sure Kouichi was still with him. He felt absolutely pathetic. In his own house, and afraid of being left alone..._in his own house_.

Kouichi seemed to understand this. Scowling, he reassured Takuya, "I'm still here, goggle brain. I'm not going anywhere until we _get_ Shinya. And why are you _tiptoeing_ into his room?"

The goggle boy winced as a groggy voice called out, "Takuya...?"

"Now you've done it," Takuya hissed, glaring at Kouichi before he turned around, laughing and waving to his younger brother. "Hey! Shinya...! I was wondering if you'd like to go for a walk, you know, to get your strength back and all...?" he asked his brother, nervously tugging on his goggle straps.

Looking at Kouichi, Shinya waved and murmured, "So are we going somewhere?"

Kouichi nodded. Takuya shook his head.

The two exchanged glances.

Kouichi shook his head. Takuya nodded.

Again, the two exchanged glances.

Exasperated, Kouichi asked, "What do you want to tell him? Are you going to _lie_?"

"NO!" Takuya shouted, reddening.

The other boy rolled his eyes. He pushed the older Kanbara out of the way and locked eyes with Shinya. "Can you get out of bed?" When Shinya nodded, Kouichi continued, "We're going to Hawaii to secure the opening point for the Area. I know this means _nothing_ to you, but we'll tell you on the way. Get Grumblemon back in your head and let's go."

For the first time that day, Shinya's eyes gleamed with excitement. "I get to help save the world?" he asked, leaning forward slightly.

Kouichi nodded.

The boy jumped out of bed, and raced to his closet. "_This_ is something worth waking up for!" he exclaimed, before kicking Takuya and Kouichi out to get ready.

-------------------------------------

"You don't mind?" Rai asked, eyeing Kako and Kanaye as they conversed in low voices.

Marise shook his head. "They're free to do as they will. It's probably better that way. Besides, Kouichi's right." He let out a small laugh. "For all they know, I might not know a thing."

"You _don't_," Hideki added sourly.

A shrug. "Maybe. Maybe not."

Hideki scowled. "You're a lousy dad," he muttered. "Sometimes I wonder why Mom married you."

"There are better things to worry about," Marise told him softly.

Rai smiled softly as she turned back to the two. Standing up, she asked Marise, "What _should_ we worry about?"

"It will be tricky to leave our future in the hands our children, but the chances are better than leaving it in the hands of adults. When wings of hope begin to sprout, they must be tended carefully, else they will fail to work," Marise said softly, allowing his eyes to drift to Kanaye, then past the boy, to his daughter. "In this case, the new wings must be looked after with utmost care. They were forced to grow quickly...I'm not sure how they will function..." He broke off, sounding troubled.

"You mean..." Rai's eyes widened slightly with understanding as Marise nodded.

Confused, Hideki looked from his father to Rai. "What? What does he mean? I don't get it!" When no one addressed him, Hideki exhaled sharply and folded his arms. "No one tells me anything..."

"Probably because you blab it out to other people," Rai told him with a snort.

"HEY!"

Marise straightened his posture and descended the two steps below to reach the floor. "We should be ready any time now for the gate to open," he murmured softly. It wouldn't be long before darkness descended upon them all. And in that darkness, all he could do was hope.

-------------------------------------

Ranamon scowled. "You're making the water cold!" she complained, glaring at Kumamon.

Kumamon paused from creating his ice bridge. With an apologetic look on his face, he replied, "Sorry. You can swim _away_ from the ice, if that would help."

"Are you telling me what to do?"

_Forget it. This is pointless_, Kumamon thought, continuing with his ice bridge.

Flying close to Kumamon, Kazemon asked, "Want me to carry you a while, Kumamon?"

But the ice warrior shook his head. "She'll just have to deal with it," he replied firmly. Then: "Any news about where we're supposed to head?"

"It's just a short way from here. We'll get there in no time," she told him. "Hey, what's up ahead?" Kazemon suddenly asked.

Kumamon continued icing his way through the ocean. "I don't know..." He paused and looked up, paling his he did. "Kazemon, that's a..."

"Shark!"

-------------------------------------

Junpei looked around the now busy streets of Shibuya. "Where are we supposed to go...?" he groaned, scratching the back of his neck. He didn't _want_ to be the leader of his squad, but he didn't trust the other two to lead.

"You don't know where to go?" Ritsuo asked, looking around as well.

Troubled, Junpei met the boy's eyes. "Well, I know it's somewhere in Japan...I mean, it's got to be somewhere in Shibuya, but...that's hardly specific," he admitted.

The two boys looked at Fujitaka. "Any idea?" Ritsuo asked.

The younger boy smirked.

"That's a yes?" Junpei guessed.

Ritsuo shrugged, doing his best not to glare at Fujitaka. _I knew I should have paid more attention during those meetings_, he thought, wishing he could receive the glory.

Fujitaka opened his mouth: "Kanaye's house."

-------------------------------------

Kouichi dedigivolved and inhaled slowly as a sharp, salty breeze blew in his face. "Well, here we are," he murmured, swallowing. "How much time do we have until the Area opens?" he asked Takuya.

The two Kanbaras exchanged glances. Shinya looked at his watch. "Two minutes," he squeaked.

Groans escaped all three boys.

"Hey, Takuya..." Shinya started.

Takuya looked at his brother in askance.

"I'm _hungry_," Shinya whined, clutching his stomach.

Twitching, the goggle boy snapped, "You should have said that _before_ we left!"

"I wasn't hungry then!"

"Go dive and catch a fish! Here, allow me to help you!"

Kouichi winced as he saw Takuya and Shinya wrestling one another, veering close to the waves. _So long as they don't get pulled in_, he thought, _it's all just a brotherly fight_. He chose to ignore the pains he felt at the last two words of that string of thought.

"Hey, look!"

Kouichi looked up to find Shinya pointing into the distance, where a black swirling cloud was beginning to form.

He walked up beside the two brothers. "What is that...?" he muttered in disbelief.

They all held their breath, watching as the clouds stretched and extended, covering the waters before them in a murky fog. The winds picked up speed. There was howling, thunder...sounds of creatures laughing at them. Kouichi shielded his eyes as a blinding flash appeared before them.

When everything cleared again, he discovered he had been holding his breath. Letting out a sputtering cough, he inhaled several times before he could make up for the lack of oxygen.

"Is that...?" he heard Takuya utter.

Kouichi moved his hand out of the way of his eyes and blinked several times to make sure it wasn't a dream.

"The Dark Area," he confirmed, stepping forward, above the two feet of water between the Area and home soil.

Behind him, Takuya and Shinya followed his example.

Turning around, Kouichi looked at Shinya with a crooked smile. "Welcome to the Digital World."

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Sorry. SORRY! Sunday I lost data, so I was depressed. I couldn't write for some reason. It hurt. I read something Monday that made me feel tenfold better, but the motivation was hard to get back. I was inspired, but the words were lost. I'm so sorry for making you wait. It's not even a good chapter, because a lot of the points were forced out and misplaced in the story and chapter. There'll be problems getting the next chapter up. I have an annoying Lit paper to write (and normally I like Lit. But I hate cultural projects that deal with my own culture).

Thank you for the reviews! Really helped me- **GemmaniGirl, x.XWeirdxnxwiseX.x**

Review or PM or Flame.


	38. Fights: Internal, External

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Fights: Internal, External

-------------------------------------

Kumamon and Kazemon held their breath, watching the gray dorsal fin that was peeking just above the water. Kazemon let out a gasp and settled her feet on the ice. "Where do you think it's heading?" she asked.

Kumamon merely shrugged. "I could freeze it," he offered. He involuntarily took a step back.

His companion digimon noticed this. "Nervous?"

"You?"

"You're freezing pretty much everything in a five foot radius, Kumamon."

Startled, the ice warrior looked up to find Kazemon hovering above the ice she had stood on seconds ago, staring at it warily. "Sorry," he mumbled, trying to calm his frazzled nerves.

"Don't worry about it," she replied, keeping to the air. Her eyes scanned the area. A frustrated noise escaped her. "Where _is_ she?"

"Ranamon?"

"Yeah!"

"I...don't know," Kumamon admitted, growing worried as well. "Kazemon, you don't think the shark-"

"No, don't be silly. Sharks are attracted to blood and fish-like things. So unless Ranamon looks like a fish-" The digimon paused here, tensing as she saw the fin slowly drift towards them. "But...Ranamon's a digimon. She has a head. She can attack the shark if it decides to attack her first."

"I heard...there are territorial sharks," Kumamon said slowly. His eyes were glued to the gray amidst the blue water.

Kazemon shook her head furiously and muttered, "Unless she doesn't want to hurt the shark...but that would be stupid. She doesn't have to _hurt_ it, just discourage it."

For several more seconds, they both stood there, breathing harsh and rapid, gazing at the shark and awaiting its move. The fin disappeared, and both relaxed, but awaited the reappearance of Ranamon. After a minute or so, Kumamon realized he was drifting forward. Startled, he began flailing around on his floating mini iceberg, screaming for help and attempting to grasp the nearest thing to stabilize himself. This happened to be Kazemon's leg.

With a shriek, Kazemon was dragged into the icy depths, Kumamon below her. _What _is_ all of this? I don't see what's going on!_ She, too, began to flail, trying to reach for the ice again, until she noticed the blurry figure near the long trail of ice Kumamon had been separated from. _That little..._

Kumamon felt his hand getting kicked thoroughly, then grabbed. The pain he felt was intense, and the pressure from the deep didn't seem to help. _I don't want to drown_, he thought, squeezing his eyes shut. He felt the last of his breath go out unceremoniously through his mouth and then...

"Hurricane wave!" Kazemon shouted furiously, aiming her attack towards the end of the long stretch of ice. A column of water rose to negate it. "Ranamon, get out here!"

A groggy Kumamon rose to his feet and froze the water off his form. "What-" he started. When Ranamon's head rose out of the water, gazing defiantly up at Kazemon, Kumamon clamped his mouth shut. _I was put with girls, and I don't know a THING about them_. _Where's the justice in that? For all I know, they could be angry with each other over boys! Wait...I don't know!_ Kumamon shook the thoughts from his head and looked from one group mate to another. Both were locked in a fierce glaring competition.

"What do you think you're doing?" demanded Kazemon. She lowered herself beside Kumamon and placed her hands on her hips.

Ranamon rose out of the water and pulled herself up on the nearby ice. She muttered something, and a sharp, thin wave sliced through the ice behind her, allowing it to dislodge. "Don't be stupid," she said, voice quiet. "Don't you realize what's happening?"

Kazemon continued to glare.

"You didn't feel it, then? I suppose it makes sense. You haven't been exposed to Lucemon. We have to lay low for a while. The Area..." She broke off. Her voice dropped to a harsh whisper. "The Area...the points are being activated." Ranamon held up a hand, revealing a black wristband with a blue stone embedded in it, backed by a silver design. "We were all given one of these. They allow us to access our digital forms, and we also have connection to Lucemon. He can call me at anytime," she explained quickly.

Kumamon allowed a grim smile to line his face. "So we've got to act in case..."

It wasn't hard to see where she was going. With a relieved sigh, Kazemon lowered her head. A second later, she looked up and gave a curt nod. "Right. We've got to act in case. But that shark-"

Ranamon just smiled thinly. "My act. But for now, I suggest Mr. Freeze here raises us higher in the air. It'll be a bit rough, but we don't want to be embedded in sand."

Quickly, Kumamon complied, making a tower of ice a good deal higher. He made sure the top was wide enough for all of them to stand on. They stood on the top, observing as a sudden gush of wind blew towards them, and in it, Kumamon could have sworn he felt a bit of sand.

-------------------------------------

"Kanaye's house," Fujitaka repeated again. "It has to be."

Ritsuo scowled openly, but Junpei tried to contain his anger. Through gritted teeth, he inquired in a steely voice, "Why didn't you tell us earlier?"

Scowling in turn, the boy replied, "Because I didn't _remember_."

"I'm so sure!" Ritsuo suddenly shouted, stepping towards Fujitaka in a position to punch.

Junpei blocked this by stepping in front of the boy. He cringed from the impact of catching both of the other boy's hands in his own, and took a step back, muttering a string of curses under his breath. "You're letting this get to you," he said, "and that's not what we want. Keep your calm, Ritsuo. Save this for the bad guys."

With a growl Ritsuo pulled away, however roughly. This resulted in Junpei falling onto the cool cement and being helped up by Fujitaka. A wordless thanks was exchanged when they met eyes, but that was hardly what Junpei was trying to get through. He could see the troubled look in the youngest boy's eyes, and he suspected there was something being held back.

_This is better than working with Takuya_, Junpei thought, smiling inwardly. _That is, if you subtract Ritsuo_. Aloud: "We'll go to Kanaye's house then."

The other two nodded. Junpei soon found himself walking behind the other two boys, not even sure if they were taking him to the right place. Part of him wanted to walk ahead, but another part of him decided it wouldn't hurt.

Fujitaka slowed down to Junpei's pace and whispered in a low voice, "We have to be careful. You understand that, right?" He was met with a confused look. "Listen...uh...Lucemon has his sources. In a way, you're our prisoner. Got it?" he said.

Slowly, Junpei nodded. It began to sink into his head. Shaking his head in disbelief, he said, "Amazing..." and everything lapsed into a silence.

Seconds turned into minutes that seemed like hours. To Junpei, they seemed to be making no progress whatsoever. Several times, he unconsciously opened his mouth to point this fact out, but caught himself quickly and fell silent.

"I want candy," Ritsuo moaned out of the blue, stopping in his tracks and clutching his head in his hands. "This is ridiculous! I'm hungry, I can't think, and we aren't going _anywhere_." He continued to mutter to himself incomprehensibly about food and being lost.

The other two boys scowled. Junpei was about to step forward and hit Ritsuo on the head, but thought better of this when Fujitaka sent him a warning glance.

"Hurry up," the youngest boy said. "We have to get the idiot to Kanaye's house _now_." He sent Ritsuo a meaningful glance that went overlooked, and was misunderstood.

Junpei drew a breath. As much as he hated to do this, it was necessary. Calmly, he stepped in front of Ritsuo and turned around, shaking his head sadly. "Face it, you two," he said in a tired voice. If he hadn't wearing a watch, he would have sworn they had been out for hours. "We're lost."

He watched as the other two exchanged glances and nodded in grim agreement.

"So let's figure out _what_ is doing this," Junpei added, slowly allowing his eyes to sweep through his surroundings.

Ritsuo gaped at him. "What do you mean?" he sputtered, taking a few steps back until he hit the wall of a nearby building. He jumped away from that, looking around himself, as if they were being watched.

A grim smile formed on Junpei's lips. "I think the Area...well, I think the Area formed by now..." He hesitated.

"And...?" Fujitaka pressed him for details.

Junpei swallowed and continued, "There's a digimon behind this. I know it."

-------------------------------------

The feeling was interesting, to say at the least. It was strange to feel the adrenaline running through him, the wind brushing past him in sharp strokes, and the familiar feel of his companions. The only strange thing was the last part, as he was reminded again and again that Shinya was Grumblemon.

"How much longer do you think this will take?" he could hear BurningGreymon shout above the loud sounds that seemed to come from KaiserLeomon's running.

From atop KaiserLeomon, Shinya doubled over. "Can we...stop...? I think I feel sick again," he muttered, covering his mouth with a hand while the other rushed to his stomach.

KaiserLeomon screeched to a stop. "Get off get off get off!" he shouted, resisting the urge to throw Shinya off. But the thought of vomit all over him was a bit unsettling.

"Give me a break." The fire warrior quickly swept his brother off the other digimon, and flew him towards the waterside.

Kouichi took the time to de-digivolve and collapse backwards, staring up half-lidded at the sickeningly pale blue sky. At the sound of gagging, he winced, shut his eyes, and rolled over onto his side, with his back to both Kanbara brothers, Takuya who had reverted to human form just seconds ago.

If anything was unbearable at the moment, it was the heat, something strange, considering Lucemon had brought back the Dark Area. _It doesn't even look dark_, Kouichi thought, rolling onto his other side. Feeling compelled, he asked aloud, "Shinya okay?"

Takuya walked over, supporting the staggering Shinya. "He's good," said the older boy. With a sigh, he collapsed on his knees, then bending forward to support himself with his palms. "Why is this place so _hot_?" he groaned, scrunching his face up before relaxing it, gasping as he did.

Weakly, Shinya sat down on the burning ground, cross-legged. He drew a breath and said, "I guess we're lucky we decided to travel beside the water, huh?"

"We're _lucky_ there's _any_ water," Takuya corrected with a scowl. His gaze quickly shifted to Kouichi, who sat up with a start. "Anything wrong?" the goggle boy asked.

The other boy lowered himself to the ground slowly, all the while keeping his eyes on what was ahead of him. "No," he said slowly, "Nothing wrong..." With a dull thud, his head met the ground.

"Liar."

Two pairs of eyes turned to Shinya.

The youngest of the three rose to his feet, swallowing and shifting from one foot to another. He bit his lip out of annoyance, pondering whether he should say anything more or not. When he reached a conclusion, his mouth opened and the words came out louder than either Kouichi or Takuya expected.

"Duskmon's gone, right? What happened? Where's Kouji? I bet everything I've got that Kouichi wouldn't be with us if Kouji were here. He'd want to go with Kouji, right?" Shinya looked at Kouichi pointedly.

Wincing, Kouichi tried to deny this. "That's not-" he managed, before Shinya continued.

"And if Duskmon were here, he'd be making all these rude jokes and stuff. Lowemon would be yelling at him. Lowemon's not even talking right now. I know I'm supposed to be the stupid little kid who's Takuya's brother, but I'd appreciate being informed, you know." He paused before adding, "After all, Grumblemon put me through this whole mess with Kanaye's help. At least I should know what I did." Shinya swallowed and looked at his feet. "Please?" he tried in a small voice.

"I think we better get a move on it!" Takuya exclaimed, jumping to his feet and laughing nervously. Turning away from his brother, he sent Kouichi an apologetic look.

Kouichi waved at it with a dismissive hand. "He's right," he said simply, gazing approvingly at Shinya. "I see where you get your method from, Shinya. I _would_ say you're a total copy of Kouji or Takuya, but that's just demeaning. How about we walk right now? I'll tell you everything on the way." It was Kouichi's turn to stand up. "We could use the time to cool off," he added quietly, before he fell silent and began walking towards the water.

With a sigh, Takuya followed, grabbing Shinya's arm when the boy just stood there dumbly, staring after Kouichi. "Come on," Takuya said in a low voice. He hid an amused smile as Shinya scowled and brushed his hand away. The goggle boy then turned to Kouichi, staring at the other boy intensely as they walked.

"So tell me," said Takuya, "are you hiding something, then? If Shinya said you're a liar, you're a liar, and that means something's wrong. If something were wrong, it wouldn't just concern you, Kouichi. Keep in mind, we're your friends..." After glancing distastefully at the younger Kanbara, he added, "Well, _I'm_ your friend. Shinya's my stupid, little, kid brother."

Kouichi smiled thinly at this. His gaze was kept glued onto the water, a dark and menacing blue. "Funny thing is, I'm not sure if anything's wrong or not. Let's start at the beginning. Shinya opened the point in Japan, but someone else opened the other two points. Who?" he said softly. "We could be facing more than just Lucemon, something larger. Somehow, last night, or maybe even before, Kouji was possessed. But how, Takuya? Nothing makes sense..." Kouichi shook his head. "And then there's..."

"Duskmon?" Shinya guessed, looking up with a bright expression on his face.

Swallowing, Kouichi nodded. "After fighting Kouji...no..._while_ fighting Kouji, I realized the moves were familiar. They weren't Kouji's. Kouji has a more cautious style. This one was full out, like he knew he wasn't going to lose...just like..."

"Duskmon?" Shinya guessed again.

With a scowl, Takuya punched his brother's shoulder. "Shaddup!"

Another smile was suppressed, and Kouichi nodded. He turned his gaze to look behind him, where Shinya had stopped to rub his injured arm. Absentmindedly, he continued, "I saw a shadow of Duskmon behind Kouji after you all ran towards me. Out of all the digimon, I would have thought Lobomon, but not Duskmon. It's kind of strange. Why Kouji?" Softer, he added, "Why Duskmon?"

"And the egg?" Shinya asked. His hand still rested on his other shoulder.

Kouichi shrugged. "Somehow, it just...went into Kouji..."

"COOL!" the boy exclaimed, clearly amused.

"NOT cool," Takuya growled.

The two brothers exchanged a glare before they realized Kouichi had left them behind. Shinya yanked on his brother's sleeve before he could catch up to Kouichi. "Don't you think he seems a bit depressed? You know, more than usual? I mean, sure, Kouji possessed by Duskmon is bad, but I think there's more," he said in a harsh whisper.

"You're right!" Takuya added in a low voice. "Shall we tickle him and find out?" Shinya nodded eagerly in his agreement.

Just as they turned back to run up to Kouichi, the said boy called back, "I _heard_ that. Don't think tickling me will work. I'll just digivolve and beat you up. And anyway, it's not like-" Kouichi stopped where he was, dead silent.

"It's not like what, huh? Not like we can't fight back? I'll show you-"

"Shut up, Takuya," Shinya hissed, elbowing his older brother.

"What?" Takuya exclaimed, reddening. He began to sulk, muttering incomprehensibly to himself.

Irritated, Kouichi snapped, "Takuya, be quiet. Do you _hear_ that?"

All thought of an idiotic act escaped Takuya, and was replaced by a grave look. Quietly, he scanned their surroundings, trying not to move or make a sound. Beside him, Shinya did the same, but instead kept his eyes glued on Kouichi.

Something moved.

With a warning shout from Kouichi, Takuya digivolved quickly into Agunimon, just in time to block the assault of the spying digimon. Cursing under his breath, Agunimon threw his hands outward, sending the assaulter backwards, sliding to break his fall on the dirt ground.

Silence befell them, as Agunimon glared at the digimon in front of him.

Shinya was the first to break the silence. "Is this a joke?" he asked, scratching his head and staring confused at the little digimon.

The purple penguin glared. He jumped off the ground and landed on Agunimon's face. "Eternal slapping!" he yelled, but was immediately thrown off by a panicking Agunimon.

"Get _off_!" Agunimon snapped, hitting the penguin aside with a hand. Growling, he aimed his hand at the Penguinmon. "PYRO DARTS!"

Yelping, the digimon began jumping up and down, throwing up its wings and trying to blow the fire darts away. When the darts came no more, the Penguinmon stuck its tongue out at Agunimon, then turned around to leave, gulping as it did.

In front of the purple digimon stood a silent Lowemon, lance pointing at the smaller digimon's neck. "Surrender?" was all Lowemon said.

"Okay, okay!" the penguin squawked.

"Who sent you?" Agunimon growled, walking towards it so it was sandwiched between himself and Lowemon. Shinya ran up to one side, and they cornered it against small rock.

"No can say, buddy. It's part of the contract!" Solemnly, it pulled a rolled up piece of paper and held it up to Lowemon's outstretched hand.

"'I will sper you and your fiends if you give me your obsetions and go attack the kids. In change, you can't tell them who I am, and hafta beat them. If you don't do this, I get to keep your obsetions and fiends.' Signed, a really bad speller. I don't suppose he didn't go to school like he was supposed to?" Lowemon handed the contract to Shinya, who scanned it, stifling his laughter, and then handed it to Agunimon.

Angrily, Agunimon set the contract on fire at contact. "There. No contract." He lifted the Penguinmon up by the neck. "Now _who is it?_" His grip tightened around the penguin's neck.

"Agunimon, let him go. Our priority is to get to Hawaii first," Lowemon reminded him.

"...right..." Agunimon dropped the penguin unceremoniously on the ground. "You're coming with us, pipsqueak," he added as the Penguinmon crawled to his feet. "That okay, Lowemon?" He looked at his companion, who had fallen silent again.

Finally, Lowemon said, "We need to get a move on it. There are more coming. At the very least, we need to outrun them."

"Outrun them it is!" Shinya exclaimed, then began chanting, "Digivolve! Digivolve! Digivolve!"

Lowemon digivolved into KaiserLeomon and stared expectantly at Shinya. Scowling, Agunimon demanded, "And why can't _you_ digivolve?"

Shinya just shrugged as he scrambled onto KaiserLeomon's back. "I'm just cool like that?" he suggested. "Can that penguin thing ride, too?"

"It's _Penguinmon!_" The purple digimon jumped up into Shinya's arms. "I like you kid," he commented. "Mon like you and me ought to stick together. Hey, is Mr. Bad-Temper riding, too?"

"SLIDE EVOLUTION," Agunimon yelled, getting Penguinmon's attention as he intended, digivolving into BurningGreymon. "I'm still here, buddy, more fiery than ever. Don't get your guard down."

Shinya laughed. "That's my-"

"Shush."

Surprised, Shinya gazed up at BurningGreymon, than nodded in understanding. "That's my tutor," he said, more solemnly than before.

Penguinmon snickered. "You've got one lousy tutor."

KaiserLeomon and BurningGreymon exchanged hidden grins. "Ready? Too bad. Let's _go_!" BurningGreymon shouted, pushing himself against a sharp breeze and keeping pace with KaiserLeomon. And on the other digimon's back, he could see two very flustered beings.

"By the way," KaiserLeomon yelled, "I think I know who our purple feathered friend's employer is."

BurningGreymon just grinned. He had a slight idea, too.

-------------------------------------

He stood at the doorway, eyes as two dark orbs that resembled black holes. One could become so immersed in them, it was impossible to get out. Thoughtfully, the boy scratched his chin. The conversation at hand wouldn't bode well for the one against him.

"What do you mean?" asked the man in a bored tone.

"You know very well what I mean, Lucemon." The last word was practically spat out. The visitor continued angrily, "We had an agreement-"

He could imagine Lucemon smiling thinly, leaning back in the chair and hiding his laughter. _Fools_, he thought. _He can think what he wants_. _Both of them_. _So long as I get what I want_...

A hand rose to touch his chest, in the general vicinity of his heart as pain coursed through his body. He did not bend under the pressure. _Stay dormant,_ he thought with a slow exhale,_ and you will awaken soon_. The throbbing faded, and he returned his attention to the two men.

"Agreement?" scoffed Lucemon. "You're dealing with a devil here, Taishi. What made you think I'd hold to an agreement? It's all words." The man rose to his feet. "Now, I do believe I have another guest at the door. "Can you show yourself out?"

That tone usually went with a smirk. The boy frowned. _The smirk is usually followed by a fight_...

"You _will_ regret this," Taishi hissed, rising out of his chair in a dignified manner. With a low growl, he turned around and marched out the door, not even bothering to acknowledge the boy.

The boy watched the fading figure of the old man. _Mr. Aizawa_. _Cherubimon_. _A fool_, he thought, trying to keep a hold of himself as the pain radiated through his body, twice as painful as before.

A soft voice startled him. "Kouji, come in," Lucemon commanded from the doorway. The man smirked, leading the boy in and shutting the door behind them.

_The smirk is usually followed by a fight_...

"So, Kouji...or should I say Duskmon...?" The man in front of him, Lucemon's shadow, rose an eyebrow mockingly.

"Kouji is fine," the boy replied. _Stupid_. _It's Duskmon, of course_.

He chuckled and settled back down in his seat. "Duskmon it is. About our agreement-"

_Time to catch him off guard_. He smiled inwardly. "I thought you thought an agreement is all words? Well?" _Considering what happened to Crusadermon and Dynasmon_..._well, I'm not going down_. Dull eyes looked up at human ones.

Lucemon seemed taken aback. He quickly recomposed himself and stared back in a calm, serene manner. He cleared his throat. "Surely you didn't believe what I said for Aizawa applies to you...?" Noticing the blank, but at the same time, accusing look that Kouji was shooting towards him, Lucemon let out a nervous laugh. "It isn't the same! Aizawa is my enemy. I had fine print in my agreement, and he just didn't take the time to hear it."

"Nevertheless..." With a sweep of his right arm, Kouji sent a pile of papers to scatter on the floor, ignoring the annoyed growl that escaped Lucemon. Quietly, he picked up one. "Kouichi. You realize I could have told him...no..._anyone_ else who you were? It wasn't that hard to figure out, especially when it's someone as obvious as you. You owe me to a certain degree..._Lucemon_."

"Of course, of course..."

"But what's the catch?"

A thin smile graced Lucemon's lips. "Kill Kouichi, of course."

Kouji suppressed a smile. "You think he's the real threat?" he asked.

At this, Lucemon seemed puzzled. The smile turned into a frown as he tried searching Kouji's face for an answer. At this point, Duskmon made the boy's face as stolid as possible. The frown deepened. "Are you insinuating that he isn't...?"

"The others are equally as powerful."

Scowling, Lucemon snapped, "Then destroy them all!"

"I don't owe you anything, Lucemon."

Tight-lipped, Lucemon rose to his feet. "Well...you want your own body, don't you?"

"What do you think?" snapped the boy. "My other one deteriorated _spying for you_."

"I don't think not giving me away is good enough. Destroy Kouichi, and we'll talk."

"Destroy Kouichi and I'll _get_ my body," he corrected.

A scowl appeared on Lucemon's face.

_A scowl marks the end of the conversation_, Duskmon recited in his head. "Then it's a done deal," he said quickly, rising to his feet. "I destroy Kouichi, I get my body, you get the world, and you leave me alone. Think of it this way: I'll be destroying not only Kouichi, but Kouji too. Twins like them..._especially_ them...don't really take each other's deaths real well, especially if they were the one to do the killing," he commented, then turned around to leave.

Lucemon's eyes glittered as he watched the fading form of Kouji. "It seems," he mused, "I'll have to watch you, too, Duskmon."

-------------------------------------

"HELLO?" Kouji yelled, kicking the wall to his right. He was stuck, and he wasn't even sure where he was stuck. "HEY, I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR ME, DUSKMON."

_Quiet_. _You're hurting my ears_.

"You mean _my_ ears," the boy corrected, gazing up at the gray sky.

Gray.

Everything around him was gray.

_I really hate this color_, Kouji thought, sniffing in disapproval. "Couldn't you have at least made everything blue?"

_I'll make it black if you don't shut up_.

Scowling, the boy suggested, "Just let me out, and you won't hear anything else."

_But then I won't have a body_.

"A body...why can't you just take Kouichi's body?" snapped the bandana boy. _After all, I don't think Kouichi would mind being a power hungry digimon coming after me again_. _Who knows?_ _He might even prefer working for Lucemon over living with me_.

"Don't be stupid."

Kouji jumped back at the sound of Duskmon's voice, which, up until now, had been merely thoughts. He turned around to see the form of Duskmon behind him. "H-hey...don't do that," he mumbled weakly.

Staring coldly down at the boy, Duskmon said, "Do you think Kouichi doesn't care about you? I suppose you didn't see him after I fought him as you..."

"How _could_ I?" Kouji snapped, glaring angrily.

Duskmon waved a hand towards Kouji. "_Think_ you want to see it. No, you can't think that you can get out and get out like that," he said in an exasperated tone, noticing Kouji jumping up and down and muttering curses with his eyes shut tight.

Cursing once more and kicking the wall to his right again, Kouji snapped, "Just let me out! You're ruining my life!"

"You think you didn't ruin mine? Or Kako's? What about Takuya and the rest of the group? Did you forget about your own _brother_?" Duskmon let out a sharp, mocking laugh. "You _deserve_ this more than anything, Kouji. If you hadn't been poking around and accepting the clues Lucemon gave you, you wouldn't be in this mess."

Angrily, Kouji clenched his fists by his side. "If I had Lobomon-" he started, but stopped. Again, he tried, "If I had my _D-Tector_-" and stopped. Swallowing, he leaned against the wall to his right, the same wall he had been kicking his entire time there. "But...I don't have either," he said weakly. "And why is that...?" A tired expression on his face, he looked up at Duskmon.

Duskmon just smirked. "Lobomon you might have a chance to get..." _If you can find him_, the digimon thought, but kept it to himself.

"HOW?"

"Find out yourself." Duskmon turned around and walked away.

Kouji stared wide-eyed and pushed himself off the wall. "Get back here!" he yelled, frantic. He didn't even think to run after the digimon.

Duskmon didn't look back. "I have a body to occupy."

"No, get _back here_!" Kouji yelled again, but by then, Duskmon had faded. "Get...back here..." he whispered to himself weakly. "I don't...want...to be alone anymore..."

Sapped of all his strength, Kouji sank down to his knees and let his back lean against the wall. "I don't...not...alone..."

Here he was, back at square one.

Alone.

-------------------------------------

Izumi, Naoko and Tomoki sat under a tree, welcoming the shade it offered with extended arms. Just a few yards away was the water of the sea, and if that wasn't enough for them, the ice hill Kumamon had created was melted into slush in front of them.

"Now if only we had flavorings," Naoko sighed, hanging her head.

"Snow cones," Tomoki groaned. The growl of his stomach and the saliva forming in his mouth didn't help.

Izumi shook her head. "_Please_," she said matter-of-factly, "it takes more energy to warm the ice in your mouth than it does to...I don't know. But just don't stuff it in your mouth, please. Jump in it, try to drink the water where it exists, but _don't eat the ice_."

Naoko just shook her head and Tomoki mumbled, "Yes, Mother..."

"Besides," the girl added, patting the small bag at her side, "I've got food and water for all of us."

"Food!" Tomoki yelled.

"Water?" Naoko said, staring at Izumi in askance.

Smiling, Izumi just patted her bag again.

As Tomoki jumped to his feet and began dancing around yelling about food and water, both girls shared a small smile. Izumi wasn't sure how Naoko felt about everything, but it was strange to her that she was sitting under the same tree as her enemy, fighting alongside her enemy, smiling with her enemy.

_But is she my enemy?_ Izumi frowned to herself, and looked away from Naoko. "Tomoki..." she murmured.

The boy stopped and stared at Izumi in embarrassment. "Sorry," he mumbled sheepishly, and took a seat in front of the two girls, gazing up at the tree. Smiling happily, he sighed and said, "The breeze feels good..."

"Breeze...?" Izumi repeated. One eyebrow rose delicately.

Naoko sat straight, looking around for a sign. Letting out a curse, she pushed up the sleeve of her shirt, revealing the wristband. Izumi and Tomoki followed, pulling out their D-Tectors and digivolving.

Kazemon lifted herself off the ground and gazed at the rustling leaves of the tree. "Show yourself," she shouted, making sure to keep her guard up. From her peripheral vision, she could see Ranamon dive into the water and Kumamon run towards the slush and turn around, aiming his gaze at the tree.

"Fine!" Kazemon calculated where she thought the enemy would be and aimed her fingertips at the direction. "Hurricane wave!"

"Crystal freeze!"

"Whipping waves!"

The three attacks hit their mark on the tree, blasting of a few branches and leaves. The target they had intended to hit, however, leapt out of the tree and into its shade. Kazemon gaped.

"A...a _monkey_?" she shrieked, pointing at it in disbelief.

"_Makuramon_. Don't you have any manners?" the digimon sneered, seeming to enjoy every minute of this. "No? How about I teach you some? Primal orb!"

The attack hit Kazemon straight on, knocking her out of the air and into the upper portion of the slush.

Makuramon, delighted, jumped onto the lower branches of the tree. "Ooh, what's wrong?" he asked Kumamon. "_Bear_ got your tongue?"

"You're..._really_, _really lame_, you know that?" Kumamon spat through gritted teeth. "Slide evolution!" Seconds later, Korikakumon stood on the battlefield, examining his opponent quietly. Something distracted him, grabbing his attention from the corner of his eye. Korikakumon made sure not to act too surprised. Instead, he pretended to be intimidated by Makuramon, taking a step back.

From the water, Ranamon nodded silently before disappearing beneath the waves. Korikakumon concentrated on distracting Makuramon. "'_Primal orb_,' you say? Yeah, _primal_ definitely fits you!" he snorted. "Frozen arrowheads!"

Growling angrily, Makuramon dodged with ease. "Am _I_ primal?" he demanded. "What about you? PRIMAL ORB!"

Korikakumon cringed as he saw the attack coming. With all his might, he jumped to the side. "Yeah, you're primal," he shouted, voice weaker than before. _I'm not so sure I want to continue with this_. He pulled out his axes. "Avalanche axes!"

"Primal orb!"

Behind him, Korikakumon heard Zephyrmon shout, "Hurricane gale!"

Resisting the urge to turn around and hug Zephyrmon, Korikakumon concentrated all his energy into the attack, making sure to finish it and _not_ turn around.

"Plasma pods!" Zephyrmon continued.

"Slide Evolution!" Korikakumon shouted. As Kumamon, he then sent out his next attack: "Crystal freeze!" Instead of aiming for Makuramon, he hit the tree, freezing it along with a good portion of the ground below it.

Seeing the sudden change in tactics, Makuramon laughed from behind the tree trunk. "Stupid...are you going to destroy it, next? Thing that will stop my dodging your attacks?" he sneered as Zephyrmon sent another attack in his direction. "Destroying the tree will collapse the Area. Collapsing the Area improperly might result in..._consequences_."

"Whoever said we were _destroying_ the tree?" Kumamon snorted.

A glint of humor appeared in Zephyrmon's eyes. "Too slippery?"

Makuramon's eyes widened in understanding. Letting out a monkey shriek, he began scratching at the trunk, trying to climb the tree, but he only slid back down. "Titanic tempest!" came a yell from behind him, and Calmaramon's twisting body came towards him.

In a last attempt to hold his ground, Makuramon shouted something, and Calmaramon was sent flying back. He then aimed at Kumamon, shouting the same thing. Zephyrmon, knowing full well she was next, flew up into the sky at a decent height. Then, pointing her arms down towards Makuramon, she yelled, "Hurricane gale!"

"Raurava!" she heard Makuramon shout before she, too, was sent flying back into the sea of slush once more.

Breathing ragged and harsh, Makuramon stepped towards Tomoki's limp body. "Fools," he muttered, kicking the boy.

"WHAT? NOOO! ETERNAL SLAPPING!" someone yelled from the distance. Curious at this disturbance, Makuramon looked up. Something purple was heading straight for him. Still confused, he tilted his head to the side.

"ETERNAL SLAPPING!" the purple thing yelled, attaching itself to Makuramon's face and hitting him continuously with its wings. "Eternal slapping, eternal slapping, eternal slapping!"

Letting out another shriek, Makuramon batted the bird aside. "Stupid bird brain," he spat, kicking the purple bird.

"Takuya! Look what you did!" he heard a boy whimper.

"If he's going to talk _trash_ about me, he's going to get the first hit! And whoever gives him the first hit is going to _die_ if they aren't me!" someone else declared.

Makuramon squinted to see what was ahead in the distance. He could make up a black dot, but that was about it. As it came closer, he saw two boys standing on the back of a digimon. "What...?" he muttered under his breath.

At his feet, Penguinmon stood up and brushed himself off. Quietly, he made off towards the tree to hide until the battle was finished.

When KaiserLeomon came to a stop, Shinya let out a strangled cry. "Where's Penguinmon?" he demanded of his brother, glaring angrily.

Takuya just shrugged. His eyes then glued themselves onto Makuramon. "But that guy'll pay the price if he did away with _my_ punching bag," he growled, yanking out a D-Tector.

"Shinya, go check on Izumi and the others. We'll keep this guy busy," KaiserLeomon muttered, digivolving back into Lowemon. His spear was pointed towards Makuramon. "Ready?" Lowemon asked the newly digivolved Aldamon.

Grinning, Aldamon replied, "More than I'll ever be."

In a flash they had Makuramon in between them. Lowemon yelled, "Shadow meteor!" and sent his attack flying into Makuramon.

The monkey jumped out of the way, and turned his head to glare at Lowemon. "Primal-"

By that time, Lowemon had charged up another attack. "Shadow meteor," he growled again.

From behind Makuramon, who was still in the air, Aldamon yelled, "Atomic Inferno!"

Caught between a fireball and the shadow attack, Makuramon could think of nothing to do. Negating one would result in getting hit by the other; there was no hope of dodging, as both had been cleverly aimed to where he would land. Realizing there was nothing he could do, he let an empty threat fly out of his throat. "You _won't_ get away with this! Just wait!" he shrieked and thrashed violently as the fire consumed him.

"That was quick," Takuya muttered, whipping out his D-Tector and scanning the data. "Did we really lose the penguin?" he asked in disappointment.

Kouichi was slow to de-digivolve. Once he did, he looked towards the tree. "Your punch bag is there," he said quietly, and then moved to check on Izumi and Tomoki, who had regained consciousness and were sitting just in front of the slush, looking very cold as they talked to a chipper Shinya.

Takuya walked over to the tree, frowning down upon the nervous penguin. "Hey...scaredy cat," he muttered grabbing Penguinmon by one wing and holding the digimon outstretched in front of him as he marched over to his brother. "Shinya, here you go," muttered the older Kanbara. He let the penguin fall into the ice.

"Where's Naoko?" Kouichi asked suddenly, looking around with alarm.

Worried, Izumi bit her lower lip. "Makuramon sent her flying back that way," she murmured, pointing towards the water. "She was Calmaramon when it happened, so I don't know..." The girl broke off and rose to her feet, accepting Takuya's arm for support.

"Wow, you were worried about me?"

Everyone turned to the waterside, gaping in surprise at Naoko, who rested halfway in the water, one hand grabbing the dorsal fin of a shark. "I'm still alive and well," the girl laughed, pulling herself out of the water. The shark departed, and Naoko dug into her pocket, pulling out a dirt brown wristband. She tossed this to Shinya.

Surprised, Shinya caught it and stared at her. "What-"

"It was supposed to be given to you by Kanaye when Grumblemon was to possess you, but that never happened. Hey, things change, right? I think Grumblemon preferred the old plan, but it's expected. He's pretty stubborn."

"He says he heard that."

"No duh, Sherlock?" Naoko retorted with a snort. "Use that to digivolve. It also acts as a communication between us, meaning myself, Fujita, Ritsuo, Ai, and Kanaye. Unfortunately, Lucemon, too. Do your best to block Ai and Lucemon from your mind; I'm not sure if you've met either, but you'll know. Ai's the only other girl, and Lucemon's the only adult. Other than that, you're on your own. Well? What are you waiting for? Go secure your point!" the girl snapped, waving an impatient hand towards Kouichi.

Kouichi just shook his head. "I think we're working overtime today, Takuya," he muttered to his companion.

Grumpily, Takuya nodded in agreement, helping Izumi sit down in the shade of the frozen tree. "Yeah, maybe we should charge them," he suggested with a glare towards Naoko.

"Oh _please_. Just get going!"

With a half smile lighting his face, Kouichi murmured, "She's right. We should be going." Wordlessly, he whipped out his D-Tector and digivolved into KaiserLeomon. Without bothering to wait for the other two Kanbaras, or Penguinmon, he dashed off.

Scowling, Takuya gave Izumi a quick, courteous kiss on the back of her hand before he digivolved as well, and picked up both Shinya and Penguinmon before dashing off to catch up with Kouichi.

Tomoki hesitated before breaking the silence. "Is it just me, or did Kouichi seem a bit...off?" he asked.

Once more, the two girls exchanged full-fledged smiles with laughter sparking around them, leaving the poor, confused Tomoki in the dark.

-------------------------------------

"We should be hurrying, not lagging," KaiserLeomon said when BurningGreymon caught up to him to dump Shinya and Penguinmon on the lion's back. Needless to say, the two would have fallen off if KaiserLeomon hadn't slowed down. "Shinya, can you digivolve?"

The boy swallowed back the bile that threatened to escape him. "Uh...ulgh...w-well, I could _try_," he started.

KaiserLeomon skidded to a halt. "Then try." He patiently waited as Shinya clambered off and stared at the wristband he had put on.

On the other hand, BurningGreymon flew straight past the others, and took a quick U-turn to come back and crash into the ground beside KaiserLeomon. He went completely unnoticed.

"Uh...Kouichi, I don't think I can do this," Shinya mumbled, staring hopelessly at the wristband. He prodded the polished dirt colored marble with a finger. "She never said..." The boy trailed off and hung his head in shame. "I don't..."

Cursing fluently, BurningGreymon rose to his feet and dusted himself off. Shooting a rude look towards the younger Kanbara, he snorted. "Give me a break! You're good with fixing a computer, but you can't activate some stupid wristband?" scowled the digimon.

This resulted in Shinya glaring at him. "Hey, at least I _can_ fix the computer! You don't understand a single word that comes out of Tomoki's mouth! Even _Izumi_ says I'm smarter than you!" he retorted hotly.

"WHAT?"

"Shut up, both of you. Shinya, get back on. Penguinmon, I don't care if you have something to say. Save it, or I'll throw you off. You'll figure out how to activate it later, I'm sure," KaiserLeomon growled, turning his head to look over at Shinya.

Obediently, Shinya climbed (with help from BurningGreymon and Penguinmon) onto KaiserLeomon once more, and the four were off, silent as they had started.

It was Shinya who broke the silence, staring at Penguinmon in curiosity. "Hey, who's the guy who made you sign the contract?" he asked the digimon, hoping to distract himself from his 'riding sickness,' as he had come to term it.

"Sign? I didn't sign," Penguinmon said with indignation. "I was forced to read and agree to the terms on the sheet!"

"YOU DIDN'T SIGN?" BurningGreymon shrieked angrily.

Shinya plugged his ears and sent a disgusted look towards his brother, muttering, "I never knew you could scream like a girl, Takuya."

Angrily, BurningGreymon yelled, "I DO NOT."

"Do too."

"DO NOT."

"I'll _kill_ whoever talks next," KaiserLeomon threatened, and with that, all thoughts of conversation were left behind with the ground behind them.

It took several more very long minutes until they saw any sign of green ahead of them. When they did, and KaiserLeomon decided they were close enough, he stopped and de-digivolved, making sure Shinya and Penguinmon were off his back before he did. "I feel like a pack mule," Kouichi muttered, pocketing his D-Tector.

Takuya snorted as he fell to the ground from the air unceremoniously. "I feel like a pigeon," he returned.

"At least you don't feel like a carrier pigeon."

"No, just a dead one."

The other boy rolled his eyes. Peering ahead, Kouichi murmured, "Right. So we'll be heading to the tree..."

Penguinmon cackled in delight. "The Tree! Haha...what an original name...the _Tree_," he laughed, falling on his back and rolling from one side to another.

"I'll _give_ you a _reason_ to roll around," Takuya growled at the same time Kouichi snapped, "Get up, stupid penguin."

Letting out a small noise of discontent, the purple digimon rose to his feet and jumped onto Shinya's back to clamber onto the boy's shoulder. There, he promptly fell down, only to be caught by Shinya's hands.

"What now?" Shinya inquired, gazing up at his brother and Kouichi eagerly. The excitement shone clear in his eyes, challenged only by the confusion of seeing the grave features of the older boys.

"Now...we walk," Kouichi said. He took a step forward and stopped. "A-...actually, why don't you two go ahead? I have a headache," he said in a quiet voice, turning to his right to examine the clarity of the seawater so close to the shore.

Puzzled, both Kanbaras exchanged glances and shrugged. "Sure," Takuya said, ushering Shinya forward and shooting several glances back at Kouichi. But the boy remained the same, sulking figure, even as they were towards the docks.

Kouichi squatted down, leaning forward slightly and dipping his hand into the teal water. First his fingertips, then half his hand, then up to the wrist; he cupped the water and sighed. Kouichi yanked his hand out of the water and brought it up to his forehead. Standing up, the boy murmured, "Maybe if life was this clear..."

Shaking his head in dismay, he began to run to catch up to the others.

-------------------------------------

"This place is..." Takuya was at a loss for words.

"Beautiful? Amazing? Familiar? Enchanting?" Penguinmon babbled, hopping out of Shinya's hands and wobbling ahead of them all, cackling delightedly to himself.

"AWESOME..." the two Kanbaras chorused, grinning at their surroundings.

Behind them, Kouichi stared glumly at the ground. The same ground. _The same ground where...I wonder if Piximon is still there,_ he thought, feeling a sharp pain course through him, starting at his heart and spreading outward. He staggered to a stop, a short one that went unnoticed, much to his relief. _What's wrong with me...? I'm so ridiculous_, Kouichi told himself, placing a hand on a nearby tree to regain his balance. _Maybe Duskmon was right_...

The familiar presence of Lowemon startled him. _What do you mean?_ asked the digimon.

_Maybe...feelings just get in the way_. _Look at me, Lowemon...I'm a mess_. Kouichi pushed himself forward and winced as the pain coursed through him again.

_Don't be stupid_, was his reply.

Kouichi looked up and around for any sign of the Warrior of Darkness.

_Don't be stupid_, Lowemon told Kouichi again,_ because Duskmon would never want you to think that, not even for a minute_.

_How...?_ Kouichi bit his lip and decided not to ask. Instead, he concentrated on catching up to the Kanbara brothers. "It's up ahead," he told them softly, staring ahead with a stolid expression, his usual poker face on.

They pushed on, despite the wonders around them, and managed not to get caught up in one single place. It was splendor after splendor, not ceasing to amaze them even as they approached the center tree.

"Awesome," Shinya breathed, walking up to the gigantic trunk and placing a hand on it in reverence. "Do all trees grow like this in the Digital World?" Bright-eyed, he turned back to look at Kouichi and Takuya in askance. Confusion flashed through his face at the sight of Kouichi, but quickly disappeared.

At Shinya's feet, Penguinmon snorted. "Not all," the digimon stated matter-of-factly. "Just this one. And yes, this tree _is_ part of the Digital World _and_ the real one!" With a smug look on his face, the penguin continued on, spouting out impromptu fabrications.

Chuckling, Takuya shook his head. Casting a glance to Kouichi, he murmured, "They look like they're having fun."

"Yeah..." Kouichi muttered in reply, looking at the ground with searching eyes.

An exasperated look appeared on the goggle boy's face. "Kouichi, just tell me what's wrong. You look like there are traps out to get you everywhere," Takuya said.

At once, Kouichi looked up and stared straight at Shinya. "I think..."

There was a rustle of the leaves, and a gentle breeze blew past them. Kouichi paled and looked around hesitantly. Finally, he took a step forward. "Shinya, _move_!"

The yell echoed in the air, startling and immobilizing Shinya for several seconds before what the older boy meant sank in. In a panicked manner, he made a dash towards his brother, falling to his knees, scrambling back up and picking Penguinmon up as he did. "What is that?" he shouted, fear evident in his voice.

Takuya winced and whipped out his D-Tector. "_Another_ one. I guess it's now or never, huh, Kouichi?" He sent a grim smile to his companion as he said this with a dry chuckle.

Solemnly, Kouichi nodded in agreement and pulled out his own D-Tector.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Chapter was supposed to be longer, but if I worked on it any more, it would be a story itself. XP Sorry for taking so long. Thanks to those patient waiters and to everyone who caught up. I don't like the chapter title.

I have a few projects for Mother's Day that I need to get done before updating ch. 39. One, a story (it's half way done) and the other is a pillow! But I need to figure out _inconspicuously_ which cloth my mom likes, how to embroider _neatly_, then sew the pillow together in less than a week! Boy am I screwed! Then there are all those other stories I'm neglecting. I'm so mean. Poor stories.

What makes a good leader? GOGGLES. Savers needs GOGGLES. XP Ah, the jokes I can make off that.

Thanks for the reviews-**GemmaniGirl, The Light's Refrain, ****x.XWeirdxnxWiseX.x**

Review or PM or Flame.


	39. A Bet And A Promise

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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A Bet And A Promise

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"We can't be going in circles," Fujitaka exclaimed suddenly. They had decided to walk straight down one street, and had been doing so for the past few minutes, hoping to find a loop or something. So far, nothing out of the unusual had happened, and Fujitaka decided it was time to voice his doubts.

Junpei and Ritsuo looked around to marvel at this thought. It was true that they hadn't been going in circles, and neither could explain why. They continued to walk, looking around to make sure they hadn't seen one of the shops or windows or strange cracks in the walls before.

After much contemplation, Junpei shook his head. "Don't read too much into it," he told them, wondering if it was for real or a trick to drop their guard. Either way didn't bode _too_ well. There would just be someone else to attack them if it was for real.

They kept Junpei's words at heart and broke into a run, not wanting their luck to change until they were a decent distance away. It was a race against the unknown force they wished to capture, and yet even if they _did_ know what it was, they weren't sure if they could beat it. It was all spur of the moment that anything out of the ordinary could happen.

It was with great joy that they reached Kanaye's house, whooping and cheering and jumping and listening to Ritsuo swear as he realized he stepped in gum. Neither boy had ever seen Fujitaka so excited as he pointed to the front door and exclaimed, "We can target what it was on the main computer! It can't hide that way!"

"Main computer...?" Junpei echoed.

Fujitaka nodded furiously and Ritsuo took his time to explain, "Basically it's the 'window' in the incredibly white room that you probably don't know about. I know that Kako and Kimura were there. The electronics and stuff are shielded by a holographic wall. But it works well-that is, the wall."

He looked at Fujitaka and opened his mouth, but the youngest of the trio was already at the front door, searching impatiently for the key. Instead, Ritsuo motioned to Junpei, and together, they treaded through the lawn (Ritsuo warned Junpei of traps), around to the front door. Ritsuo held out the key, which Fujitaka grabbed greedily and used to open the door.

The door swung open and all three boys drew in a breath of apprehension. Junpei went so far as to shut his eyes and clench his fists so tightly that his nails dug into his palms, drawing blood. When the boy realized this, he opened his eyes and shook his head for being so silly.

The coast was clear.

"Come on," he said to the other two, waving an impatient hand as he looked over his shoulder and ran in.

"Wait up! You hardly know anything about this place!" Ritsuo yelled, following closely behind Fujitaka.

Junpei grinned cheekily. A mischievous glint shone brightly in his eyes as he announced, "Well then where's the kitchen? I'm starved!"

Ritsuo and Fujitaka exchanged bland glances.

"Do you want to hold him down or kick him?" asked the younger boy.

"_Kick_ him," Ritsuo spat venomously.

Junpei's shoulders dropped and his eyes lowered to the ground. "Aww, come on, guys..."

The other two grinned good-naturedly. "Hurry up, Junpei," Fujitaka said. Ritsuo was walking towards the first door to their right. Fujitaka made sure he was close to the other boy. Though no one seemed to be in the house, he couldn't shake of the feeling that something was wrong.

Nodding and understanding the look on Fujitaka's face as well as his actions, Junpei followed, breaking into a loose jog so he could catch up. _Thank digimon to whoever invented body language_, he thought, shutting his eyes for a brief second and muttering this thought aloud.

They all came to a stop at the door of the room with Ritsuo at the lead. He stood immobile, his breath coming out in shallow pants. One hand rested on the frame of the door and tightened considerably.

Fujitaka and Junpei noticed this. Curiously, the youngest stood on his tiptoes to look over Ritsuo's arm. "What the hell is-" he started, annoyed at the hold up.

When Fujitaka stopped in mid-sentence, Junpei began to worry. This just made matters tenfold worse, especially considering he couldn't even _see_ what was going on. Ritsuo and Fujitaka were his relative size, give or take an inch or two; Fujitaka was on tiptoe, so he very much doubted that going on tiptoe would do very much. Nevertheless, he tried, and caught a glimpse of what was wrong.

He wasn't sure how he found his voice in the midst of it all. It was just loud enough to be heard.

"What...is that?" asked Junpei, pushing both boys out of the way and gazing wide-eyed at the metal before him.

-------------------------------------

A gallant looking figure stepped out from behind the tree, looking proud and confident. His eyes caught sight of Penguinmon before anything else. "Hey, you, didn't I send you to get rid of those kids?" growled the digimon.

A small smile appeared on Kouichi's lips, but nothing more. Takuya noticed this and watched. The boy seemed to be fighting some internal battle with himself, at the same time paying attention to the horse-bodied digimon.

Penguinmon looked to Shinya for an answer, and Shinya looked to Takuya, who was busy staring at Kouichi. The horse-bodied digimon followed this chain of gazes and was taken aback at the sight before him. "Y-you two..." he stuttered, staring from Takuya to Kouichi.

"Hm?" Takuya turned to the digimon and waved. "Yo. Long time no see, eh, Sagittarimon?" he said with a great big grin. _This could prove to actually be fun_. _Maybe we won't have to fight him_. It was a hope, but a large one nonetheless.

Sagittarimon swallowed. His anxiety transformed into anger when he saw Penguinmon clamber onto Shinya's head. "You were s'posed to get rid of them!" he roared accusingly.

"Keep your hair on!" Penguinmon retorted.

"Gah! For that, your obsessions-"

"POSESSIONS," Takuya and Kouichi corrected, the former yelling and the latter saying this in the form of a sigh.

"Uh...yeah, your ob-pos-uh..."

Kouichi pocketed his D-Tector. "Just give up, would you?" he said in a quiet voice.

Takuya slammed a fist in the palm of his other hand. "Shinya, I've got it!" he suddenly exclaimed. "Kouichi's lovesick!"

"Woah! You mean-" Shinya started.

The older Kanbara nodded, eyes glinting with excitement. "It makes sense, don't you think?" he asked, not bothering to keep his voice at a whisper. "He was like this when Kouji-"

Kouichi whipped out his D-Tector and pointed it towards Takuya. "SHUT. UP," he commanded in a level voice. "We'll talk about _that_ later. Right now..." The D-Tector swung around to point at Sagittarimon. "...we'll concentrate on him. Sorry, Sagittarimon, but we'll only ask you once: will you leave, do we have to beat you in to a pulp, or do we have to destroy you for good?" He had his best poker face on, unwavering.

A growl escaped the digimon. "Your fiends are gonna get it, Penguinmon!" he yelled, turning around. An arrow was pulled out and stringed onto the bow. Sagittarimon yanked it back and let it fly.

"Dammit, no!" Takuya shouted, taking a step forward and stopping. Out of the corner of his eye he caught a glimpse of Lowemon rushing forward, spear ready in hand.

The arrow was knocked out of the air, only a foot away from where it had been let loose. One hand carried the lance that was pointed at Sagittarimon's neck. The other was occupied by three Penguinmon clinging on for dear life with ropes hanging loosely around them.

Lowemon's eyes narrowed onto Sagittarimon. "That better not be the latter option." He was quiet and threatening enough to send a wave of fear out with a radius that reached even Shinya, who was the furthest away. The youngest Kanbara took a step back instinctively and swallowed.

"Lucemon said I could have all the obsessions I wanted!" Sagittarimon argued childishly. He strung another arrow, aiming it at Lowemon. "Judgment arrow!"

Dodging skillfully, Lowemon shouted, "Shadow lance!" The attack not only broke the arrow and let it fall to the ground by its predecessor, but also caused Sagittarimon's knees to buckle. The digimon collapsed as the attack hit his legs, as was sent skidding back.

"Aren't you gonna help, Takuya?" Shinya asked, running over to his brother so as to not get separated.

Takuya shook his head. "Not unless he needs help." _And he doesn't_. _This match is in the bag_.

"Shadow meteor," Lowemon uttered, and the attack hit the already downed Sagittarimon.

A grunt escaped Sagittarimon, and Lowemon used the time to deliver the Penguinmon into Shinya's hands. From there, he stood in front of Takuya, watching Sagittarimon rise shakily to his feet and let out a chuckle.

_Not good_. Lowemon held up the lance for protection as the digimon galloped towards him, laughing wildly. The impact sent him flying back into a nearby bush, and forced him to de-digivolve.

Letting out a curse, Takuya whipped out his D-Tector, but a second too late. An arrow came flying towards him, skinning his thumb, but more importantly knocking the D-Tector out of his hand and a meter or two to his side. _Not enough time to get it_, he realized with dismay. Instead, he got into a defensive stance in front of his brother.

"Shinya, now would be the time to figure out that wristband," he said in a warning tone. Sagittarimon was nuts, he was sure. It had been just four or so years, and Takuya was sure the digimon hadn't gained _that_ much power. The goggle boy forced a grin.

"You've been training."

Sagittarimon roared with laughter, dropping his guard. Mentally, Takuya cursed himself for not moving fast enough to pick up his D-Tector. "Training?" the digimon repeated. "Lucemon gave me this power!"

"Not good enough!" Takuya retorted, picking up a stone and throwing it at the digimon. It was only half the size of his fist, but it was only a distraction. "Shinya!" Takuya snapped again, looking over his shoulder and at his brother. Shinya just stood there, staring at his brother in shock. Angrily, he demanded, "What are you doing?"

"Y-you're...bleeding," Shinya stuttered softly, pointing to his brother's thumb.

A scowl appeared. "Yes, I am. This is the real thing, Shinya. This isn't some videogame! Get it together!" the older boy shouted, returning his gaze to Sagittarimon. _Lucemon's power, huh? This isn't good. Kouichi, why are you still unconscious? We need you_...

Had he still been looking at his brother, he would have noticed the look of panic in the boy's eyes. "I can't!" Shinya cried, dropping to his knees and holding on tightly to all the Penguinmon. "I can't, Takuya!"

Angrily, Takuya whirled his head around again. "Stop being a baby!"

"I'm not! I can't! I don't know what I'm doing!"

"Shinya, you _can't_ run from a boss battle, _can_ you? Well this is a boss battle! There _are_ no continues! You've got to-"

Shinya let out a yell as he watched his brother fly over him and land with a crash beside Kouichi. "Takuya!" he screamed, unsure of what to do. _I'm such a sissy_, the boy thought, shutting his eyes and holding on tighter to the Penguinmon. _But what can I do? I'm as good as Penguinmon, even worse_. _I can't do anything_...

His eyes opened when he realized the comfort in his arms had disappeared. "Wh-"

"ETERNAL SLAPPING!" he heard being yelled over and over again. Above this, he heard someone say, "Keep at it, you guys! A bit longer and we'll have him done for!"

"Penguinmon, no!" Shinya shouted, back on his feet. _What are they doing?_

All the Penguinmon were actively participating in the fray, swatting away at Sagittarimon like fleas. The one whom Shinya had come to know so well stopped briefly before grinning and yelling, "We've got to fight, Shinya! I owe you three, you know? You, your brother...that other kid...you three helped me."

"You don't owe me! You don't owe any of us! Get out of there!" the boy cried desperately, but the penguin had gone back to concentrating his efforts on the larger digimon.

"You...stinkin'...fleas!" Sagittarimon let out a roar and drew himself up to his full high, going as far as to rise onto his hind legs. Two of the Penguinmon fell off promptly and were crushed under his hooves as Sagittarimon landed. Another was plucked off and thrown to the ground. "Judgment arrow!" yelled the Sagittarimon, and the small body of the penguin went limp.

"N-no!" Shinya shouted. "Penguinmon, just stop!" He stared at the digimon pleadingly, fists clenched tightly, but he could only watch. His body refused to respond.

For that moment, all seemed to go in slow motion. Sagittarimon raised his hind legs, and Penguinmon, who had been on his flank, fell to the ground, stunned. While he should of thought of escape, he instead turned to Shinya, raising a wing to salute with an impish grin. "Debt repaid?" were the last words that left his lips before he was sent flying into the tree, an arrow following right after.

"PENGUINMON!" Shinya screamed, racing towards Sagittarimon blindly. His blood was boiling in his veins, and his vision was hazy, now turning white. Perhaps he should have cared that he was rushing to his doom, perhaps he should have cared that all his friends were lying on the ground, but he didn't. The only word on his mind was revenge, and he intended to have his soon.

"You'll pay," growled Shinya, stopping in front of Sagittarimon. He yanked his sleeve down so it didn't cover the wristband. A blinding light was emitted from the stone. "You'll pay with your _life_!"

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The heap of metal turned to the boys, letting a low growl escape its throat. Ritsuo stood at the doorway, still unmoving, but at the same time analyzing what was in front of him. "A digimon," he managed. His throat felt dry, but it was too late to do anything about it now. "A digimon," he repeated again.

Without warning, Ritsuo took a step back. All the boys let out a shout as they tumbled down onto the ground in a heap with Junpei at the bottom.

"Get off!" Junpei snapped, irritated that they were acting like frightened bunnies: immobile, alert, and ready to bound off at the first sign of enemy advance.

Fujitaka scrambled to his feet, allowing a scowl to decorate his features. Quickly turning to Junpei, he snapped, "Well we don't exactly have _battle_ _experience_."

"You mean you're..."

"Amateurs," Ritsuo finished, rising to his feet. "There was no real need to digivolve. Naoko stays on top of things, so she's digivolved billions of times, but we..." He sent an uneasy glance back at the enemy digimon.

Junpei let out an annoyed growl and pushed them out of the way. "_Back me up_," he ordered, flipping out his D-Tector. "Hey, you! Yeah, I'm talking to you, ya big useless heap of metal!" He glared insolently at the digimon. "Have a name?"

The metal turned it's head towards Junpei, revealing a dino-like face. "Do you, fatty?"

A twitch. Junpei's hands clenched into fists and he retorted, "That's not nice...at least I'm not extinct, dino breath!"

"I can walk out in broad daylight without being accused of being obese," snorted the digimon. He bared his metal teeth, then turned his body fully towards the three boys. The silver colored metal plated most of his body, save for his right eye, and there were a few loose wires around him.

The boy finally decided to introduce himself. "Junpei." The D-Tector remained by his side, and his hands were loose, ready to yank the item up in the case of a needed digivolution.

"Metaltyrannomon," returned the digimon. Light bounced off his shiny body and momentarily blinded Junpei.

"The computer!" Ritsuo and Fujitaka both yelled this out of synchrony, but the amount of horror their voices contained was level.

Metaltyrannomon just chuckled at their reaction. "I hope you don't mind my Datamon...friends...operating on your computer, do you? No? Well that's good."

Angrily, Fujitaka stepped forward, holding up his fists. Through gritted teeth he snarled, "Why you-" He let out sputters of objection as Ritsuo held him back by the shoulders firmly. "Let me go!" he shouted over and over again, but to no avail.

"Keep a cool head," Junpei hissed under his breath before holding up his D-Tector. "Up for it, junk metal?"

"Only if you are, fatty," came the metallic reply. Eagerly, the digimon allowed his hands to clash together, emitting long, screeching noises. It reminded the boys of nails dragging down a chalkboard.

"Yeah, deafen us to death! Spirit evolution!" Junpei shouted, quickly digivolving into Blitzmon. Sparks flew as Blitzmon flew forward, yelling, "Lightning blitz!" Metal clanged against metal. "As you can see, it's _muscle_, not _fat_." He pushed off and slammed a fist into the floor. "Thunder fist!"

Thunder roared and sparks collided into the tyrannosaurus. Smoke screened the room, and, de-digivolving, Junpei let out a triumphant cry. "Who wants some more?" To Fujitaka and Ritsuo, he said, "_That's_ how it's done."

_Junpei, it isn't over yet_.

Hearing Blitzmon's voice, Junpei jumped with a start. _But we creamed him!_ Insistent, the boy peered through the fog and gazed in horror as it cleared to reveal a chuckling heap of metal.

Heap of metal. He couldn't call Metaltyrannomon that any longer.

The D-Tector slipped out of his hand and he took a step back. "Houston, we have a problem," croaked Junpei.

-------------------------------------

He felt powerful. Nothing could stop him. _Nothing_. The power coursed through his veins, swallowing all his blood and leaving in its wake something new and exciting. The feeling passed through his entire body, and he knew he had changed.

A strange sound escaped him, sounding similar to a squeak. A growl followed it, out of annoyance. "What the hell was that?" he snapped. Hands went to his mouth.

His voice was...different...?

_I feel shorter_, Shinya thought, trying not to panic. _What happened? WHAT HAPPENED?_ He stared at his hands in horror. "I'm ugly," he stated in a voice only he could hear while feeling his face. The long nose bothered him the most.

_I can hear you, you know_. This _is what I get for letting you in control. Move aside, buddy_, came an annoyed voice.

"What? H-hey!"

Sagittarimon watched in confusion as the hands of the digimon in front of him were at war, pushing against each other. He wasn't sure whether to laugh or scream. The whole fiasco was ridiculous; he couldn't tell what was happening. _He's nuts_, concluded the horse, _so why not end his misery?_ An arrow was strung onto the bow in a matter of seconds with the use of his skilled hands. "Judge-"

There was an exasperated sigh. "Now look! He's going to attack!" The same voice came from the digimon in front of him, startling Sagittarimon as its tone changed to one of defeat. "Oh, fine!"

"-ment...uh...?" Sagittarimon quickly shook his head. Lucemon had warned him about lingering in his thoughts. _Thoughts are bad_, he told himself. The digimon in front of him was turned around and his guard was dropped. "Judgment arrow!" shouted Sagittarimon, letting the arrow loose.

He wasn't sure what happened next. The attack should have hit. In no way, seeing as how late he looked up, should his prey have escaped. Sagittarimon let out a cry of dismay and pulled out another arrow.

"Do I _have_ to?"

Quickly, he turned to the direction of the voice. The arrow was yanked back, ready to fly.

"YES!"

The voice was coming from another direction. Just as quick as before, Sagittarimon turned to the direction of the voice.

"You're getting on my nerves..."

Another direction. He could feel the sweat gather on his forehead in the form of droplets.

"You're already on mine. How I'd very much like to kick you out."

Sagittarimon let out a roar. "Hey, stop playing around!" he snapped. "I'm serious here!"

The digimon stopped on a tree branch and grinned evilly. "I bet you can't even _spell_ serious!" he returned, cackling wildly and disappearing once more. "This one's for the Penguinmon...slide evolution...! Gigasmon!" Another dark chuckle, "In case you were wondering whom you were up against."

Too prideful to show fear, Sagittarimon snorted, "Never heard of you!"

_Let's make this quick_. "Do you hear this? Tectonic slam!"

The ground shook violently. Sagittarimon's hooves seemed to dance all over the place as he tried to look for a stable spot to stand. "Wh-whu-" he started dumbly, staring in horror at the crack that formed under him. "Nooo! Stop! I'll leave, I really will!" he screamed; it was out of agony as a hoof slipped into the newly formed crack, which was no deeper than an inch.

But Gigasmon stared at him without mercy. "You'll pay with your life," he said in a hiss, slamming the ground with his fist. The crack grew wider, and the scream never escaped Sagittarimon's mouth as he fell into the endless depths. "Done," whispered Gigasmon, de-digivolving to reveal a shaking Shinya. The crack closed up once more, and all was normal.

The birds were chirping again.

A pitiful moan escaped Shinya as he sank onto his knees. "Penguinmon..." he whispered, seeing the bird lying in front of him. "You're..."

He wasn't sure if digimon were supposed to bleed, being digital and all, but Penguinmon had a small cut across his cheek. Feathers were in a ruffle, and beak was slightly apart, letting out gentle gasps. "Shinya, that was awesome," croaked the penguin.

"...hurt. You're hurt," Shinya whispered.

"Tell your brother I called him a goggle brain, would you? And to Mr. Gloom...tell him he needs to get his act up together. Maybe...when this is over..." Penguinmon stopped here, letting out a dry cough. "Maybe...I'll be reborn, and we'll see each other soon. Don't go getting into trouble now," warned the bird, seeming to smile up at Shinya.

Shinya's form shook violently as he tried to suppress both the tears and the sobs. "You aren't going to die," he said as firmly as he could. "Kouichi'll know what to do. I'll get him, and everything will-"

"Don't install false hope in yourself, kid. Be realistic. I wish I could hear more from you, but...my time here's done. Shinya..."

"P-please, stay! I'm scared-"

"The tree," Penguinmon said softly. His chin lifted, so he could see the tree, which stood gloriously behind him. "Please, by the tree..."

His voice faded and his eyes shut. Shinya scooped the penguin in his own hands and closed the beak. _You really liked to talk, huh?_ He smiled softly before searching for the other bodies of the penguins. First thing was first: they needed a grave. Takuya and Kouichi could wait.

-------------------------------------

_We're doomed, we're doomed, we're doomed! DOOMED! Someone, help, please!_ Junpei shut his eyes and dropped to the floor, his hands on his neck. "Don't kill me!" he squeaked, cracking open one eye to take a peek at his D-Tector.

"Spirit evolution!" came the chorused cry behind him. Junpei's hand fell on his D-Tector and he looked over his shoulder in shock. _Are they...!_

He nearly cried out of joy, seeing the other two boys digivolve. It was strangely scary in Junpei's opinion. _Lucemon should be more technical, shouldn't he? Giving them a gem and a wristband_. _Girly_, he thought, rising to his feet. _Izumi would kill me for saying that_.

"Leave this guy to us!" snapped Mercurymon.

"Got it," Junpei replied with unmasked enthusiasm. Sure, they would hate him for it, but he needed to think through to come up with a strategy. Brute strength had never worked before, as much as he hated to admit. Not for them, anyway. The boy proceeded to run towards the stairs, picking up his pace as Metaltyrannomon sent an attack towards them.

"Fire blast II!" came the growl.

Mercurymon let out an annoyed sigh. "I can't block this. To the side, Junpei!" he yelled, dodging out of the way of the blast. The searing heat left its impression on the two digimon, however, and they followed its trail until it embedded itself onto the wall behind them, where it died.

Junpei stood only a yard away from the blast, pressed flat against the wall, staring wide-eyed at the fight. "Don't...don't _ever_ do that again! Give me a better heads up!" he exclaimed weakly, edging away to collapse on the lower steps of the stairs. "Oh, digimon..."

"Sorry," Arbormon yelled back before returning his attention to Metaltyrannomon. A laugh escaped him and he took a step forward. "Power pummel!"

Metaltyrannomon dodged with incredible speed neither of the other digimon knew he possessed. Chuckling darkly, he barked out, "Nuclear laser!" One of the blasters on his back shone with light before a blast fired out towards Arbormon.

Arbormon nearly froze in shock, but was saved by Mercurymon. The latter of the two held up one shield to deflect the attack, swearing loudly as it instead hit the wall behind Metaltyrannomon. "Kanaye'll skin us for sure," mumbled Mercurymon weakly.

"We should concentrate more on what King Rex here will do to us! Roundhouse punt!" Arbormon tried an attack again, only to be thrown behind Metaltyrannomon.

The battle continued, Arbormon throwing the attacks and Mecurymon backing up the former when needed. Junpei watched in worried interest, wondering what he was overlooking. _Arbormon to Petaldramon, Mercurymon to Sakkakumon_..._Sa...Sakkakumon!_ He snapped his fingers in realization. "Sakkakumon! Take him in as Sakkakumon! Give him something he can't beat!" Junpei yelled. It was with delight and horror that he shivered as Mercurymon jumped back to take this into consideration.

"It should work...Arbormon, keep him on hold a bit longer! Slide evolution!" Mercurymon's form grew larger and was no longer. With that same cheshire smile on his face, Sakkakumon looked towards Metaltyrannomon wordlessly.

Arbormon was the only obstacle in Sakkakumon's way. He gracefully jumped aside, grinning up at Sakkakumon. He knew what would happen; there had been one time where Kanaye had called for Fujitaka to do this, and it was never repeated after.

"Meet your doom," Arbormon snickered, watching as Metaltyrannomon was swallowed into Sakkakumon without another word.

The room fell silent. Arbormon walked into the computer room, gazing angrily at the Datamon that occupied it. All of them hopped out of their chairs and scuttled out of the room as fast as they could.

Junpei came down from the stairs and up to a de-digivolved Ritsuo. "What now?" he asked.

With a tired smile, Ritsuo looked up at Sakkakumon and replied, "We wait."

-------------------------------------

Kako stared at her hands folded in her lap. _Kouichi_...

"Stop thinking about him," Kanaye scowled.

Reddening to a deep crimson, Kako asked dumbly, "Who?"

The boy just rolled his eyes. Sitting up from his leisure position on the couch, he gazed at her with piercing eyes. "For the past half hour, you've been staring at the clock and sighing every other minute. It's _annoying_. And then you start mumbling to yourself when you're really as loud as hell..." He trailed off and shook his head. "Why don't you just do something about it?"

"Dad won't-"

"You're going to let him control your life just as that other idiot did?"

The blush still remained on Kako's face for an altogether different reason. "How'd you know...?" she asked in a mumble.

Kanaye allowed a rare smile to light his face. Smoothly he replied, "I take care to research my opponents, whether they're in school or the Digital World. I made a tiny error once, mistaking Izumi as Marise's heir instead of you, and I don't wish to make another mistake." He stood up. "Anyway, I'm leaving."

Kako stared at him in shock. She pushed herself up and blurted, "You can't leave! I'll tell my dad!"

"And what will _he_ do about it?" Kanaye returned rudely, glaring at her once more. Kako looked at her feet and he snorted. "Exactly," the boy snapped. "Nothing. You know you want to go, Kako. Stop denying it. Or is it because you can't get out of the house without being spotted?" He sneered as he said this, knowing all too well where this would lead. They didn't call him a betting expert for nothing, after all.

With her jaw dropped, Kako took a decisive step forward, fisting her hands. "I can, too!" she snapped.

"I bet you can't."

"I bet I can!" the girl returned, shaking in fury. She drew a breath and looked around to see if anyone was looking. Then, as quietly as possible, she tiptoed towards the door.

_Bang, bang, and bang_. Kanaye folded his arms and watched her in amusement. This slowly faded as Kako stopped and turned around before she even went two feet forward. The color drained from his face, but he forced himself to keep a cool demeanor.

Kako walked towards him, jabbing a finger at his nose. "Hold it, you're trying to trick me! You've got spies set out there, huh? And then you plan to exterminate me or something! You're not even going to leave the house!" she hissed.

He resisted the urge to hit her forehead. _After all_, he thought, _I can't hit girls_. _A real pity_. Lips pursed, Kanaye told her, "I plan to go right after you. But see, if I go first and get caught, you'll get caught. If you go first, you have a better chance of getting out. If I'm not out in five minutes, go to the backyard and enter the house from there."

To his relief, the excuse worked. "Okay!" Kako replied with great enthusiasm, going back to tiptoe towards the front door.

Shaking his head in disbelief, Kanaye muttered, "The gullible of the gullible. I can't wait to see the results." Kako had reached the door by now, he knew, because the entire house shook as she closed it.

"What's she doing?" Kanaye heard someone ask.

He looked over his shoulder. _Hideki_. "Sneaking out. Let her be. I'll watch her," he offered. _Though he has no reason to trust me now that I think about it_.

"Okay. I figured she'd do something like this." Hideki shrugged and stared at Kanaye with his arms folded and an eyebrow raised.

Kanaye noticed this and shifted with discomfort. When Hideki still said nothing, he glared up at him. "What?" snapped Kanaye, not caring at the least that he was being rude. The way he saw it, Hideki was being rude by staring.

With an exasperated look on his face, Hideki shook his head. "I don't get it," he confessed, "how do you do it?"

"Do what?"

There was an exaggerated gesture towards the door. "Make her...do that!"

Kanaye grinned for what seemed like the first time in his entire life. A sudden feeling ran through him, similar to the adrenaline that resulted from the pressure and excitement of a battle, but better. New wings seemed to sprout within him, not at all dark and tattered as Devimon's. Clean, transparent, and his.

He looked in front of him and called back, "I never make a bet I can't win."

-------------------------------------

A hiccup escaped Shinya as he spread the dirt evenly across. _Bye, Penguinmon_, he thought, gazing down at the grave he had made in front of the tree. He bit his lip nervously and looked up to the blond at his side. "This won't bother the tree, will it...?" he asked in a childish whisper.

"Glad to know you care, but no," answered the boy. He stood up at his full height. "You still want to cry...?" he asked.

Shinya shook his head, wiping the tears as they spilled out of his eyes. "N-no," he replied in a shaky voice. "But I can't stop either..." His eyes drifted down towards the grave the older boy had helped him dig.

A tanned hand fell on his shoulder. Shinya looked up with wide eyes and slowly accepted the second hand that was offered to pull him up. "Thank you," whispered the boy as he rose to his feet.

The blond just smiled and waved a dismissive hand. "Let's get those other two up, shall we?" he asked. The dismissive hand waved lazily in the direction of Takuya and Kouichi.

Shinya nodded. His former feelings returned, despite his want to remember Penguinmon a little longer. "Who are you?" he asked curiously.

The blond walked towards Takuya first. "Ryuusei Egawa. You?" he asked. It was more of a conditioned reflex than a question he wanted an answer for.

The answer came as automatic as the question. "Shinya. That's my brother, Takuya," he informed the boy, his head jerking up to motion to the older Kanbara. Then, looking in Kouichi's direction, Shinya added, "And that's Kouichi."

"I know."

"Really?"

Ryuusei bent down by Takuya and gently shook him. "Hey...Takuya," he said in a low voice, not wanting to be too loud. "Wake up."

This went on for several minutes until Shinya politely intervened and lowered a hand to take off Takuya's goggles. "Uwah...?" The goggle boy stared at his brother's grinning face, which was upside down to him. "My..._goggles_! Thief!" Takuya was on his feet in a flash, fingers on Shinya's neck to tickle him without mercy.

Holding back a smile, Ryuusei watched the two for a while longer before moving onto Kouichi. Here he stopped, staring at the unconscious boy with a frown. It would be so easy just to get rid of him, destroy the Area, send Lucemon away, but that would just postpone the inevitable. Something had to be done and he didn't want it to be done.

"How do you feel?" Ryuusei muttered, looking down at Kouichi in disgust. "This is your fault..." _Or it would be if I could say that aloud_. Ignoring the painful guilt, Ryu nudged Kouichi's shoulder with the toe of his shoe. "Hey, get up," he said aloud.

Kouichi's face had been turned to the side, and Ryuusei hadn't bothered to examine it. "I'm awake," he murmured. "I've been awake for a while."

"Some help you are," Ryuusei returned.

"Not at all. Shinya's got to develop ideas for himself, you know," whispered Kouichi, pushing himself to sit up. "Besides, I'd have destroyed half the place before getting Sagittarimon, and it would be a mess." A hand pressed against the ground, and Kouichi tried to push himself up, but to no avail.

Ryu reluctantly stuck out his hand and helped the boy up. The air hung heavy between them, and the laughter from the Kanbaras went unheard. "Sorry," Kouichi murmured before walking towards Takuya, "for being a pain."

_Not at all_, Ryu thought with a shake of his head. _We're all human here_. He watched the short reunion between the three boys, as Kouichi slowly parted the brothers.

Without warning, Shinya and Takuya grabbed either of Kouichi's arms. "Confession time!" they yelled in unison, glaring at him as he blinked.

"I think Ryuusei's here for a reason," Kouichi said after much debate, slowly turning his head to look over his shoulder and nod towards the blond boy.

_He's a lot more conserved_, Ryuusei realized. An amused smile crept up his lips and betrayed him. He folded his arms and shrugged. "I've got time," he called out.

Shinya jumped up and down. "See! See! Are you really lovesick?" he asked, shaking Kouichi's hand vigorously.

Wincing, Kouichi stared at the ground. "I..."

_Oops?_ Ryuusei just shook his head. _Should I do something about it?_

Takuya used the hand that wasn't arresting Kouichi to punch his brother's shoulder. "Idiot! That's the wrong question to ask!" he scolded. Turning to Kouichi, he cleared his throat. "So, what's up between you and Kako?" He sounded more than interested.

A shrug answered them and Kouichi shook off their grips. Just as quietly, he turned to Ryuusei and murmured, "What's up?"

For a while, Ryu remained silent, scrutinizing Kouichi with an intense gaze. There was something about the boy he couldn't quite put his finger on. _I'm sure it's much more than Kako_. _He's got something else on his mind_. _Just...what?_

"Ryuusei!" Kouichi called out, gazing at him impatiently.

"Huh?" Ryu looked up, startled. "Oh...right. As you know, you can't exactly fight Lucemon from this point. He'll be resting at the center of the Area, what Marise likes to call the 'Core.' While you head to the Core, I'll be here to safeguard the point. Hideki's got the point in Japan and Ichiro's at the halfway point. All three groups will head to the Core, Rai, Taishi and Marise will be there, and we'll beat Lucemon. After that, well..."

"Alright," said Kouichi, turning around and walking past Shinya and Takuya. "Let's go."

Takuya frowned. "Go? Now?" he demanded. "Shouldn't we at least come up with a plan or something? We won't have any water-"

A heavy sigh interrupted the goggle boy. Looking over his shoulder, Kouichi muttered, "Then drink up. We can't afford any stops."

Uncertain of this tactic, Takuya glanced at his brother. Shinya noticed this and put on his best grin. "I'm fine!" he reassured his brother.

"If you say so..." An eyebrow was raised. Takuya didn't sound or look convinced. "You sure you can hold this down by yourself?" he asked Ryu instead.

Ryuusei sent an annoyed glare in Takuya's direction. "You think I can't take it?"

"I don't know...you look thin to me..." remarked the goggle boy, grinning impishly.

This time, Ryuusei's glare was directed in Shinya's direction. In that same jokingly annoyed tone, he asked Shinya, "Hey, kid, do you want your brother?" Shinya looked up and Ryu continued, "Or can I dispose of him as I please?"

"I don't want him!" Shinya replied cheerfully.

The three boys burst out laughing, and Kouichi watched them with a troubled smile on his face. _You're too conspicuous, Kouichi!_ He could hear _that_ side of him, the one that had appeared years ago, when he had first found out about Kouichi. The younger side of him said, _Remember what we did for Mom? You can't let them see you like this! We'll sort it out later, just like we always do_.

A promise that was never fulfilled. He sure made a lot of those nowadays.

Lines ran through his head, accompanied by pictures. All his works. Music...that reminded him of Kouji. Pictures...sunsets...Kako. There was no way he would be able to get his mind off anything. Solitude encouraged thinking.

Maybe thinking was for him.

He didn't even remember saying good-bye to Ryuusei. He didn't remember hearing the blond haired boy call out, "Remember what I gave you? Do you have it right now?" He didn't remember nodding and pointing to his pocket. He didn't remember Ryu continuing, "You'll need it real soon!" The only line he remembered...

"_Keep it safe_," Ryuusei had said.

_Keep it safe_, Kouichi repeated. Once out of the forest, he pulled out his D-Tector and digivolved in mid-run. _Keep it safe_. He would hold true to at least _that_ promise.

What of the promises to Kouji, to keep him safe? To Kako? To his mother? To Mr. Saito? To Hideki? To Takuya, Izumi, Tomoki, Junpei, and everyone else? He was sure he had made a promise to at least everyone. More than half those promises had been broken. He couldn't remember them. He didn't _want_ to remember them.

KaiserLeomon's feet pushed him forward for all they were worth, speeding up as he realizing BurningGreymon was behind him to his right and Grumblemon to his left. He could feel them picking up the pace, too, not wanting to be left behind. Did they trust him to lead them in the correct direction? He wasn't sure it was the right direction. Did they trust him?

There was only one promise left that he could hold true to. '_Keep it safe_,' _Ryuusei said_. _I'll do more than that_. _This is the last promise...the very last promise...I'll ever make_.

_I'll keep everyone safe_. _No matter what it takes, I'll keep everyone safe_.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Decided to cut it short here. Just because. I forgot to ask before, but how's the action? It feels weird to me (because I don't know how half the attacks look like sometimes), but in all honesty, any opinions? Or things to work on, even? Motivation is nice, but false hope is like "Yeah you'll die," when someone is saying, "Yeah, you'll live," when you're going to die and you know it. In truth, I preferred my original writing style, but there's nothing I can really do to get it back, so I'll change this one to my liking, unless you all like it. So how was the action?

Thank you for the reviews: **GemmaniGirl**, **x.XWeirdxnxWiseX.x**

Review or PM or Flame.


	40. Reunion At The Heart

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Reunion At The Heart

-------------------------------------

"So...now what?" asked Izumi breathlessly, scooping up the remains of the slush.

Tomoki shrugged and threw himself back into the slush. "Let's just...sleep," he grumbled, shutting his eyes.

The second girl scowled. Shaking her head, Naoko muttered, "You're _really_ lucky this isn't a snowstorm we're caught in."

"But it's so hot," whined the boy.

She just shook her head.

Izumi let out a sigh and rocked back onto her palms. "I think I'm hearing things," she admitted to the other two. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say that was a..." Her words trailed off and the girl sat up, suddenly alert. "Oh my-...who would come out here?" she muttered, mainly to herself.

Tomoki sat up as well, ignoring his wet back. He rose to his feet and eagerly craned his neck to try to get a better view of the distance. All the squinting and tiptoeing proved useless, and he folded his arms, waiting impatiently for the growing noise to come to him. "What is it...?" he asked aloud, not bothering to address either of the girls.

Naoko took Tomoki's spot in the slush and groaned. Her arms and legs were in the process of making slush angels. "Just forget it," she told them, stopping her movements and shutting her eyes. "No one would be crazy enough to come out here."

"Hey, it's a guy!" came the excited voice of Tomoki.

Naoko sat up. "What?"

Pointing into the distance, Tomoki shouted, "It's a guy, it's a guy, it's a guy-wait...that's not a good thing," he suddenly said, turning to Izumi with a grave look on his face. "Should we-" he started, but stopped when he heard the figure yell.

At first, the yelling was incomprehensible over the roar of the speedboat's engine. Naoko sat up and plugged her ears as the boat approached, and the other two followed suit. The man in the boat turned off the engine and jumped out, folding his arms and peering at the three in curiosity.

Their hands dropped to their sides. Naoko and Izumi stood up and walked over to Tomoki, each with one eyebrow raised. Tomoki just gawked at the man in shock, unsure of what to say.

A sigh escaped the tanned man as he muttered, "I hate water. They know that. But I'm the only one with a stupid boat, so I'm the only one who can come out here. What kind of crap is that?" He lifted up his arms. "Tada," he suddenly exclaimed, putting on the scariest cheesy smile Izumi had ever seen. Not even Takuya was that bad.

Blinking and confused stares ensued. The man held his face as it was. Finally, Tomoki, whose finger was still pointing with the arm bent, jabbed his finger forward, straightening his arm and turning his body to the side as he declared, "I know you!"

Grinning, he dropped his arms. One arm was raised again in the form of a salute. "Ichiro Egawa..." He bowed, allowing the hand to float down across his waist as he did while the other went around his back. His head rose, revealing a smirk. "At your service, miladies."

Tomoki glared. Waving to Izumi and Naoko, he snapped, "No flirting."

"Hey, doesn't mean I can't be courteous!" laughed Ichiro, lifting himself up and rubbing the back of his neck with a short laugh. "Hideki can rub off on people easily." His eyes held amusement, though his expression turned serious. Before he could say anything, Izumi interrupted.

"Wait, why are _you_ here? You're Bokomon, aren't you?" she demanded. Ichiro nodded and waited patiently as Izumi continued, "So why aren't you in digimon form? Mr. Saito said-"

A hand slipped into his pant pocket. "Marise gave the few privileged to know about the Digital World _this_." Ichiro held out a small, square, white object with a screen. "Almost a 'primeval' D-Tector. I can digivolve at will," he explained, "but it's still got its glitches. As to why I'm here..." He trailed off and pocketed the device and stared at the sky. "Wow...it's pretty cloudy out here."

Naoko tried to contain her anger. "_Why_ are you here?" she demanded. The girl sounded anything but calm.

"Oh! That's what I was explaining, huh?" Again, he trailed off and muttered to himself, "It's a pretty ominous day...I wonder if everything will go well..."

"ICHIRO," the three children yelled, glaring at him angrily.

Looking vexed, Ichiro snapped in return, "Okay! I don't get out much except for work! And usually all signs in Hawaii are good. I can't help it if I'm the superstitious type..." He drew a breath and shook his head. "Alright. Why I'm here is this: You've got to head to the center of the Area. We still need someone to guard the point. I'm here to guard the point. Now get lost, kiddies," he told them bluntly.

Naoko looked at him with an exasperated glare, Izumi blinked and nodded, and Tomoki stared in confusion. After a loud, "oh!" of realization, Tomoki exclaimed, "_That's_ why!"

"Yes, that's why." Ichiro nodded in agreement, arms folding across his chest and eyes shutting as he did.

"Okay."

"Okay."

"Okay."

"Okay."

"STOP SAYING OKAY!" Naoko barked. "I'd _really_ like to get this over with! Can we go now?" Insolently, she glared at Ichiro, who stared at her disapprovingly.

He looked offended and taken aback. Brushing back his newly dyed red hair, Ichiro muttered, "Fine, but one more thing."

The girl's glare intensified. "What?"

"Here." Ichiro held out his hand. In it was several devices, similar to his own. "Harumi designed the D-Tectors, but all the design notes were lost with her. So far, all I've been able to do is produce these. Marise likes to call them digivices. Give one to everyone else that doesn't have a D-Tector and get rid of the wristbands. We'd rather Lucemon didn't know our plans. But hey, your wristband things are pretty dandy, too," he said, jerking his head up to motion to her arm.

Naoko's hand flew to her wrist, resting on the cloth above her wristband. "Get...rid of it?" she said in a barely audible whisper.

Ichiro nodded.

The girl pulled up the peach sleeve and stared at the blue wristband. "Get...rid of it," she muttered. A sigh escaped her as she removed the wristband, stared at it longingly, then turned towards the waterside. "I guess..." Shutting her eyes, Naoko tossed the wristband half-heartedly into the water and turned back to the digivices in Ichiro's hands. Without a word, she snatched them and pocketed them. "Are they assigned specifically...?" she inquired rudely.

He nodded. "Yep. Yours should be flashing with a blue screen at your touch," Ichiro told her before waving impatiently, his sign of dismissal. "Hurry up and go. I bet Ryuusei's already beat me to Kouichi and the others. Oh, no wait-Izumi, come over here!" he called out before they could digivolve.

Tomoki and Naoko went ahead with the digivolution process, though Naoko had trouble adjusting to the new digivice at first. Izumi paused and walked back to Ichiro, tilting her head to the side as she stared at him curiously.

Three packages were held out in his hand, all the same size. He handed her one wrapped in silver foil, and another in gold. Pointing to the silver box, Ichiro told her, "Give this to Kako, and no one else. _Don't open it_. It's for Kako _only_." He then directed his attention to the gold one. "This one's also for Kako. Don't open that one either, because it isn't nice. Yeah, you can shake this one." He held out the last package, wrapped in newspaper. "And this is for Kouichi. Give it to him as soon as you see him. Tell him to open it right away on pain of death."

"That's it?" Izumi asked. When Ichiro nodded, she beamed at him and bowed quickly out of politeness. "Thank you!"

Ichiro just grinned and scratched the back of his head thoughtfully. "Aww...why can't Kako be as cute as you?"

Izumi snorted. "Have you ever seen her in a dress?"

"She's a monster," Ichiro commented, shivering at the thought.

"Izumi!" shouted Kumamon. "Hurry up!"

"Get going," Ichiro suddenly said, waving Izumi away with a scowl on his face.

Izumi just smiled. She quickly digivolved and was off, flying through the air with a carefree feeling about her. _I never told him my name. How did he know?_ Yet worry wasn't instilled in her, even at that thought. She had a good feeling about today. Ichiro had said it was ominous, but she couldn't see it. If she had looked back, she would have seen the hopeful look on Ichiro's face.

-------------------------------------

Marise stared calmly at his son and took another sip of his tea. Rai sat beside Hideki, staring at him expectantly. "They should be finished by now," he informed them quietly.

"Have fun, Hideki," Rai said quickly, pushing Hideki to his feet. She even stood up as well, ready to push him out of the house, but he refused to budge.

Looking positively outraged, Hideki declared, "I want to have a choice in this!"

The cup of tea was placed down on the table. Marise knew all too well where this was heading. With pursed lips, he asked in the same, quiet voice, "And what do you want?" He wondered why he even bothered to ask. The answer would be obvious.

Scowling, Hideki folded his arms across his chest and sat back down on the couch. "I don't _want_ to safeguard some stupid _point_. I _want_ to do something _else_."

"Which would be...?" Rai would kill him if he took Hideki's side, and Hideki would kill him if he didn't give the boy what he wanted. No matter how old he got, Hideki was still a boy.

Hideki's eyes were aflame with desire. Smirking victoriously, he shut his eyes and murmured, "I want to go to the Core."

By now, Rai was shaking with anger and worry. Hideki didn't seem to notice nor care. When his eyes open again, all Marise could see was the childish determination that used to get the boy in trouble when he was young.

_Breaking old habits would do him some good_, Marise thought with an inward smile. Before, as father, whenever that face was shown, Marise downright refused to let Hideki have his way. Now he was the commander. He had a more important job, and circumstances were different.

"Done," Marise said. He smoothly rose to his feet and walked towards the door. "I hope to see you do well in my place, Hideki," Marise called out behind him. He didn't have to turn around to see Hideki's jaw dropped to the floor, he didn't have to turn around to see Rai's anguish, and he especially didn't have to turn around to hear the silence he had left the room in.

-------------------------------------

Fujitaka de-digivolved and stared calmly at Ritsuo and Junpei, both of who had craned their necks up while he was still Sakkakumon and were still doing so. "Ehm, down here," he told them, pointing to his head with a finger.

Their gazes lowered to his head, still waiting expectantly for an explanation.

"Metaltyrannomon...has successfully been taken care of. He didn't last more than two rounds," he informed them with a smirk.

"Now what?"

"Now you three leave for the Core of the Area and I will take over your spot, if you will," came a soft voice from the doorway. Marise stood there, leaning against it heavily.

The three boys straightened in shock and their gazes lingered uneasily on Marise. Junpei was the first to break the awkward silence and bravely demand, "Why?"

Marise seemed to smile at this act of courage. Instead of snapping at them angrily, he informed them, "Because you can't guard this point and fight Lucemon at the same time." His eyes narrowed on Junpei. "You don't have much time. I suggest you leave right away."

Ritsuo began fiddling with his fingers. "Wh-what do you mean we don't have much time?" he asked nervously.

"The others should be there soon. All you have to do is head to the center of the Area and you'll meet up with them. Is it really that frightening?" inquired Marise. He would have thought they would be more frightened of fighting Lucemon than just _going_ to the Core.

"It's not that it's _frightening_," Fujitaka began uncertainly.

Junpei finished this train of thought, unsure of how to phrase it himself. "But just...so...sudden."

The man wasn't sure what to say. Shaking his head, he murmured, "I'd get used to it. Even if we know it's Lucemon, we don't know what else we're up against." Marise motioned back towards the door. "Whatever else you need to do...and Junpei, please give this to Rai," he added, handing an envelope to Junpei.

The boys nodded in understanding and slowly filed out of the house, then past the gate.

"I'm not going to lie to you," Fujitaka declared in a solemn voice, "but that guy is just plain weird."

Ritsuo nodded in grave agreement. "Yeah." Then he added, "It's like he doesn't care about anything..." He turned to Junpei. "What do you think?" he asked the boy.

Lips pressed tightly together, Junpei shrugged. _He cares_. _He's just weird about how he shows it_. He kept his thoughts to himself and instead pulled out his D-Tector, but stopped. "Let's...just get to where the Area meets the sea _first_, okay?" he murmured, breaking into a run.

He wasn't sure what to think anymore.

-------------------------------------

"Why are we stopping here?" Kanaye demanded.

Kako rolled her eyes. "If Kouichi's got a sword, he's got to have more. I just want to check it out," she added. "Besides, his mom has a right to know-"

The door opened, revealing a concerned Miss Kimura. "Know what?" she asked desperately, eyes searching Kako's for an answer.

The girl gulped and looked up. "Um, Miss Kimura," she said, stuttered as she continued, "I just was wondering if...we...could...talk...to you?"

"You're the one who hurt Kouichi last time," the woman whispered, eyes focused on Kanaye.

Uncomfortable with the entire situation, Kanaye turned his eyes to the floor. To Kako, he said in a low voice, "I think you better do this alone. I'll wait outside."

Kako nodded and followed Miss Kimura outside, shaking her head with a sigh as she shut the door behind her. Once inside, she told the lady, "He's...not here to...do anything stupid, in case you were wondering." The girl bit her lower lip nervously. "And...Kouichi is..."

"Yes?" Miss Kimura's eyes focused on her, worried.

"Uh, out..."

"Kako, please, would you tell me...? I don't want...I...don't want him to be doing something dangerous. He promised he wouldn't-"

Kako felt her breath hitch as she noticed the woman's eyes on her. All the answers were revealed. Quietly, Miss Kimura motioned to the couch and lowered her head. "So...what's he doing?" she asked.

"At the moment, I don't know," answered the girl miserably. _I thought for sure Dad would call her or something_...

Lips sealed together, Tomoko Kimura murmured, "Tell him to be safe if you see him. And to be careful. Be careful yourself, Kako. If you need anything...I..."

Kako jumped at the chance. Quickly, she asked, "Actually, do you mind if I go look through Kouichi's room? I was wondering if...well...he had anything...suitable...for...um...something. Say...a sword, perhaps?"

"I...don't know..." Thoughtfully, Miss Kimura stared at the ground. "There was one time I went through his room when he wasn't here. I found...a box, but...I couldn't open it..." Uneasily, she looked at Kako. "It's under his bed."

_Yes!_ Quickly, Kako bowed to the lady and murmured a thank you, then rushed to Kouichi's room, hurrying towards the bed. _Please, please, please_..._yes!_ Excitement filled her as she pulled out a long wooden box, sealed shut with a lock. _No_... Dejected, she stared at the box and sighed. _Where would he keep the key?_ She bit her lip nervously and stared at the bed. _Whatever_. _To hell with his privacy_. She threw the covers back and the pillow aside.

No key.

She turned towards the desk.

No key.

Cursing silently, Kako stared hard at the desk. An utter mess, as it was usually. Kako inhaled sharply. _Would he mind...if I made a bigger mess?_

There was one way to find out.

-------------------------------------

"I got it," Kako whispered, shoving the box towards Kanaye, who stood on the last doorstep, staring into the street. "Open it, oh smart one!"

Kanaye rose an eyebrow. "She doesn't mind...?" he inquired, jerking his head towards the door.

Kako yanked on the lock, shaking it several times before looking up and asking dumbly, "About what?"

"_About stealing the box which supposedly contains the sword you plan to murder people with_," Kanaye said, voice dripping heavily with annoyance and sarcasm. He gently pushed her aside, (though she pretended it was more and dramatically fell over to the side) and his sword appeared from nowhere. "_Hopefully_ this isn't too hard," he muttered, bringing the blade crashing down onto the smooth wood.

Splinters flew everywhere. Kanaye's sword disappeared. Kako shielded her eyes with an arm. Once the wood stopped flying, she brushed away any evidence into the flower bed (which she wasn't sure Kouichi or his mother would appreciate) and took the metal into her own hands. She swallowed.

"Plan...?" She looked up at Kanaye with hopeful eyes.

He just snorted. "Your area."

_Damn_. "Uh..." Kako stared at the long, well-designed item in her hands, then back up at Kanaye. "Hey, you could digivolve into Devimon and-"

"I don't _give_ piggyback rides," Kanaye interrupted, looking away as he folded his arms over his chest in a cross manner.

Kako reddened. "I never said-"

"You insinuated."

"But I didn't say-"

"Insinu-"

"Let me finish!"

"Let _me_ finish," Kanaye retorted, staring at her coldly. "I say we split from here. You won't last two seconds."

Kako's jaw dropped. "What?" she exclaimed.

Smirking, Kanaye shrugged. He turned around and began walking along the cement side-walk, not bothering to look back again. _Finally, peace and quiet_.

"Waaaaiiiit!" Kako cried, scattering the rest of the splinters and dashing after Kanaye, wincing at the weight of the object in her hands. "Come on!" she insisted. "You can't just leave me here!"

He stopped and looked over his shoulder. Only two words came out of his mouth: "Watch me," he said, and continued walking.

_Stupid idiotic jerk from another planet_, Kako thought, staring helplessly at the metal in her hands. "Then why'd you have me get this...?" she suddenly asked, looking up at Kanaye with a hurt expression on his face.

Kanaye, scowling, stopped and turned around fiercely. One look at her face sent guilt forcing him to look away. "I wanted to know how far you'd go for Kimura," he answered honestly, "and..." He walked up to her and placed a hand on the smooth metal. "I never intended that you carry this." Mercilessly, he snatched it out of her hands and walked off.

"N-No way! You can't do that, Kanaye!" Kako blurted, running after him. Her face flushed a pale shade of red as she realized there was nothing she could really do. _What _am_ I doing? Sometimes I lose track of myself_, thought the girl, walking numbly after Kanaye. _I'm still following him_. _I probably won't catch up after he digivolves_. _I want to stop_. _Can I stop?_ _Let me stop_...

A sigh escaped the two and Kanaye turned around again. "Look...let's just make a deal. I'll let you come, but when we reach a certain point, you can't come any longer, got it?" he told her, meeting the girl's eyes with an uncertain look in his eyes. He honestly wasn't sure if Kako would accept his deal or run him through after stealing the sword. In truth, he preferred the latter, however gruesome it was. The last thing he wanted to do was babysit.

He wasn't much of a baby person anyway.

Kako nodded quietly. "But I don't think that's necessary," she said. A small smile lit her face as she motioned behind her. "We've been caught."

_Hell no_, Kanaye thought, scowling angrily as he saw a bright flash of headlights. A car's engine rumbled and quieted, followed by a screech of a stop. _Not them_. Instantly, Kanaye tightened his grip on the sword.

"Kako..." came an annoyed growl, "what the hell are you doing with twerp two thousand?" A demanding look was plastered on Hideki's face, matched only by the glare on Kanaye's.

Wearily, Kako returned, "What are you doing here? I thought this was Dad's job."

All annoyance was replaced with worry. "Kako, are you-"

"I just don't feel well," the girl replied quietly. "Something doesn't feel right, that's all."

Rai stepped out of the car, half hidden by the car door. "Hideki, hurry it up! You're too slow! Come on in, all of you. We'll talk on the way," she told them, sounding agitated and excited at the same time.

Kako nodded quietly, and the three filed into the car as soon as Rai was seated again. She wasn't sure what there was to be excited about anymore.

-------------------------------------

"We've got to walk..." Hideki brushed the dark locks out of his eyes. In front of them lay a vast expanse of darkness and more darkness. Again, he sighed, "We've got to walk."

Kanaye took a step forward. "Then this is where we part."

"No-" Kako started, reaching forward for what the boy was holding.

Letting out an impatient sigh, Rai grabbed Kanaye's arm and yanked it back. "No one will be parting, thank you. And we don't have to walk if you all just shut up and let me concentrate..." She shut her eyes and drew a breath.

Hideki grinned. "Awesome. Telepathy."

"Hideki," Rai growled warningly. Her eyes were still shut. A soft sigh escaped her and her eyes opened. "That...way," she muttered, pointing in a direction that seemed so random to the other three.

"That way?" Kako repeated, staring in the direction Rai was pointing at.

"We'll be getting a ride in a few seconds if we're lucky," Rai explained with a good-natured smile visible on her lips.

A noise of discontent erupted from Hideki. "Exactly what _type_ of ride, if I may ask?" He shivered visibly and turned to Rai in askance.

She just laughed. "Drimogemon. There's exactly four."

"N-no, I can't-"

"Drimogemon?" Kako repeated. "You mean..."

"Tunnel travel," Kanaye finished with an indifferent nod.

"Cool."

"NO!" Hideki shouted as a drill poked out of the ground. "Please, no!"

"Hideki, let's _go_!" Rai shouted, heading for the nearest Drimogemon.

_This is bad_, Hideki thought, nervously climbing onto the fur of the Drimogemon. Aloud, he said, "This is _really_ bad."

-------------------------------------

"I think...I'm gonna be sick," Hideki said in a sickly voice as he fell off the Drimogemon.

"I think I _am_ sick," Kanaye added, quickly jumping off the Drimogemon and taking a deep gasp of fresh air. "Forget tunneling. I prefer walking, thank you." The feel of the metal was still cool in his grip, despite the fact that his hands were wet with sweat.

"Are we the first ones here...?" Kako asked. She scanned the area, still on the Drimogemon's back. "I guess we are..."

Rai just smiled, seeming a bit too happy for the situation they were in. "Yes we are," she agreed. Slipping off the Drimogemon's back and thanking it, she added, "But the others are coming. And Kako-watch out!"

The warning came a bit late as the Drimogemon attempted to tunnel back, forgetting Kako was still on it's back. With a yelp, the girl pushed off and landed clumsily on the dirt ground. Wincing at the impact, she called out as the Drimogemon came back out to see if she was okay, "Sorry!"

It seemed to want to say something, but didn't, and left shortly after with a quick nod.

"Kako's out of it," Hideki observed, now over his tunnel sickness. He walked over beside Rai. "Who's coming?"

Staring quietly into the distance, Rai shrugged. "I'm guessing Tomoki's squad," she said finally. "Hideki...don't do anything stupid," added Rai, before walking over to join Kako.

_I don't do anything stupid_. _But I guess she knows why I'm here now...? Great going, Hideki! You're Mr. Obvious!_ Hideki allowed a sheepish grin to appear on his face. Turning around, he let out a sigh and murmured, "Who else is coming to the party?"

"I suppose if it was a party, then Lucemon would be the host?" Kanaye questioned, pointing to one of the holes of the Drimogemon. "Something's down there."

Hideki walked over to the hole and stared down into the pitch blackness. A hand went to his mouth and he turned away, squatting down and staring at the dusty ground. "I think...I'm gonna puke..." he said in a muffled voice.

Kanaye pursed his lips. _Something we didn't need to know_. He stared silently as Rai walked over to the hole, opposite to Kanaye, and kneeled down in front of it, staring down.

"That should be Junpei's squad," she announced. Rai rose to her feet and turned her head to the right. "And that should be Kouichi's squad."

_Kimura's squad_, Kanaye thought, _not Takuya's squad_. _Kimura's squad_. His eyes narrowed in the direction where Rai's gaze was set. _Slip of a detail_. _Not wise at this time_. She was up to something. That was his only conclusion.

"So we wait...?" Kako looked at Rai in askance. When Rai nodded, Kako's gaze fell onto the ground. "Then what...?"

"We wait and see."

Kanaye noted a hint of desperation in Kako's eyes as the girl looked up. He nearly cursed when he felt his body move out of it's own accord. "Kako," said the boy. _Damn it_, Kanaye thought, wishing he had better control of himself. When she looked at him questioningly, he held out the long strip of metal in his hands. _NO_. "H-hold this, would you?" He swallowed, wishing he could swallow back the words as he did.

Kako's mouth opened. She looked confused, but when she noticed the pained expression on his face, she shut her mouth, smiled, and relinquished him of the metal. "Thank you," she added before turning away and staring into the distance.

Kanaye couldn't help but notice it was the same direction from which Kouichi's group was coming from.

-------------------------------------

The sun was beating painfully on his back. It was strange in a way, to have the sun and be in the Dark Area at the same time. Instead of covered with dark and creepy forests, the entire place seemed barren and empty with trees stripped of their leaves.

He preferred the forests to the branches.

_A simple exercise of my power_.

Kouichi felt himself fall out of the air, de-digivolved. Shock vibrated through him as he skidded forward on his arm, luckily not scraping against any rocks. "Did you two hear that?" he asked, gazing up at BurningGreymon, then Grumblemon.

Both digimon stared from Kouichi to each other.

"Nothing," said BurningGreymon. "Sorry. You sure you didn't imagine it...?"

_You should know by now not to say that_, Kouichi thought, forcing a smile. "It's probably...just the sun," he lied with no difficulty. Without warning, he bit his lower lip. He couldn't digivolve again. It took more energy than it was worth. "Uh, if you don't mind-"

"Hold on tight." Kouichi nearly yelled, hearing BurningGreymon so close. The feeling of being lifted out of the air flew through him, and butterflies entered his stomach. In the distance, he could see the familiar sights of Kumamon and Kazemon. He wasn't sure where, but he knew Naoko was with them. What worried him was further ahead and steadily growing closer.

_Too_ close.

"_Takuya_!" Kouichi growled as he saw the ground rush up to meet him. The boy landed clumsily on his feet, then tipped forward onto his stomach. "Can we challenge Lucemon to a rematch if we don't win?" asked the boy as he spat out the grains of sand that had managed to enter his mouth.

With a grin, Takuya said in a mock apologetic voice, "Sorry."

"Shut up. You know you don't mean it," Kouichi muttered, rising to his feet and rubbing the back of his head. "Where's Shin-"

"That looks awesome! I wanna see it! Can I? _Please_, Kako!" Shinya yelled, racing forward.

Kouichi watched Kako take a step back and hold the sharp item out of the younger boy's reach. _That looks familiar_. _I never knew she carried around gigantic swords_, Kouichi thought, sighing and turning his head to look at Tomoki, who was sliding down a giant mound of ice, followed by Naoko and Izumi.

A familiar voice seemed to echo from nowhere. "Alright, just a bit more..."

"Junpei?" Takuya and Kouichi chorused and exchanged glances. Two sets of eyes swept around the vast brown area, unable to locate the voice.

Out of seemingly nowhere, Junpei popped up, and Fujitaka and Ritsuo followed, being helped up by the first boy.

It was a strange reunion. Kouichi felt strange as Takuya dragged him over to the others as they began to clump up around Hideki, Kako, and Rai. Takuya, nearly falling into a giant crater, threatening to bring Kouichi along with him. Indeed, it was a reunion between friends that hadn't been separated for long. There was just one thing missing.

_Kouji_, thought Kouichi, staring quietly at the ground. _Kouji...Duskmon...Lucemon...Mr. Aizawa, Mr. Saito, Ms. Kawai...nothing makes sense_. His head snapped up when Tomoki voiced his thoughts:

"I don't understand any of this!" complained the younger boy. "Someone please explain?"

With a mischievous grin visible on his face, Hideki poked the back of Tomoki's head. "You ain't s'posed to get it, kid," he replied rudely.

"Such vulgar language," snorted Kanaye.

"I haven't gotten started," Hideki replied honestly. He was about to say more when he was dragged down by Tomoki. "What the-"

The little boy was practically stomping on Hideki as he screamed, "I want to understand! You're all liars! And you screw up everything! Tell me! Tell me now, or I'll-"

Kouichi shook his head with a smile, watching as almost everyone proceeded to drag Tomoki off of a wailing Hideki. His eyes slipped shut until her heard someone murmur, "You look unusually calm."

Eyes now open, Kouichi returned, "You look unusually benevolent."

"I can be if I want," Kanaye replied bluntly. If there was anything stranger than Kouji not being there, it was talking to Kanaye. In a civilized manner. _Again_.

"Kanaye! Get your stinkin' presence over here!" Ritsuo yelled over Hideki's indignant shrieks and Tomoki's screams, and the general noise of the crowd.

Kanaye's eyes fixed themselves on Kouichi. His lips parted slightly, ready to say something, but he hesitated. "You should..."

Naoko called out this time: "Kanaye!"

A small smile appeared on Kanaye's lips. "Go talk to her, Kimura. If anything, you need to be without regrets for this battle," he told Kouichi before finally tearing his eyes off the boy and walking to his three friends.

_Friends_. Kouichi observed the four, and then went back to staring at Tomoki and his own friends. No...it wasn't _Kanaye's_ group and then _his_ group. They were just a group. They were _all_ friends...weren't they?

_Regrets_. A long time ago, he had no regrets. No...it wasn't even long ago. Four years wasn't that long of a time, was it?

_Friends, regrets...time?_ Four years...was it more? Less? Did it matter? It was enough to change him into what he was. He finally _had_ friends. He wasn't the shy boy he had been, a social misfit. He was who he was: Kouichi Kimura. His name meant something. His friends meant something. His life meant something. His _family_ meant something, a lot more than it ever meant to him before.

"Regrets," Kouichi whispered softly to himself. His eyes were glazed over, occasionally tearing over. No sound escaped him, save the gentle footfalls as he stepped forward, one foot after another. A droplet left his eye and slid down his cheek. _Regrets_. A hand reached out to grasp a wrist. "Kako..."

A startled expression appeared on her face as she turned to him, eyes wide with surprise. "Uh...Kouichi...hey," she said softly, stuttering a little at first.

"Can I...talk to you?"

Her mouth was slightly open, trying to form the words she wanted so badly to say. Finally, she stared at the ground, trying to organize her thoughts. Kako looked up and smiled. "I'd like that very much."

-------------------------------------

They weren't too far away from the others. Both sat at one of the Drimogemon's holes, legs dangling over the pit. Kako stared quietly at her shoes, trying to ignore the fact that Kouichi was just staring at her.

Trying to end the awkward silence, Kouichi turned to stare at the space in front of him and asked, "Shouldn't you _not_ be here?"

_What's that supposed to mean?_ Kako bit her lower lip, unsure of how to interpret this. "I just wanted..."

"N-no...I didn't mean it like that," Kouichi said quickly, glancing at her. "I meant...wouldn't you rather be at home? You know...safe from all this." He made a gesture with both his hands, waving almost everywhere.

Kako broke into a smile. "Don't be silly."

"What?" He stared at her in confusion.

"I wanted to be there for you. All of you." Kako stared calmly in front of her, where the sky glowed orange. "What matters most is friendship, isn't it? I want to preserve that...and...I just didn't want to be useless, I guess. Besides..." She looked at him with a sheepish smile on her face. "I hope you don't mind, but I broke into your room and-"

"What?" Again, the same confused face, tinted with horror.

Kako nearly burst out laughing. "Be grateful it wasn't Kanaye! I told your mom, too. By the way, she says to be safe and careful. But we found that awesome sword you hid-"

_So that was my sword? _"How'd you know about my sword?" Kouichi nearly screamed. He wasn't sure how he kept his voice level.

The girl fell silent. She shifted uncomfortably. "Um, well...remember that Napoleon debate we had a while back...?" she said in a small voice. "The papers...uh..."

Kouichi looked away, embarrassed. "Y-yeah, I remember."

"From those."

"Oh." _Talk, Kouichi_. Turning to her, Kouichi murmured, "I didn't mean that...I...I mean..."

She just shook her head and met his gaze. "It's alright, Kouichi. We're human. Digimon, too, maybe, but we're human on this Earth, and there isn't much you can do about that."

"Human...? Is it human nature to be corrupted by darkness...?" Kouichi found himself spitting out bitterly.

Kako shook her head. A hand reached out to rest on top of his. "Don't insult yourself, Kouichi. You know that's not true. You can make darkness what you will," the girl said, smiling at him.

_What were Patamon's exact words...?_ Try as he might, Kouichi couldn't recall them. Instead, he muttered, "What Patamon said..."

"Yep. Uh...whenever he said that." Kako just laughed sheepishly, withdrawing her hand and rising to her feet. "Say...Kouichi...?"

"Hn?"

"What do you prefer? Sunrises or sunsets?"

Kouichi's mouth opened. _Sunrises_, he thought automatically, and he repeated the thought aloud.

Kako's reaction struck him as strange. Before, he would always stare at her while she'd jump up and down, exclaiming that she was the right one. Now, she just shook her head. "Liar. Weren't you the one who said sunsets were pretty?"

He didn't say anything, but watched the sunlight be absorbed by her, then be converted into some other light that he could see shining within her.

"Don't change for anyone, Kouichi. Change for _you_. Be what makes you _Kouichi_, not human. And use the sword, would you? You wrote it yourself, saying, '_It's a great sword, but I don't have the skill to wield it yet_. _I don't think I'll ever have the skill_.' Well I think your training has paid off. I _know_ it has. So please, use to sword. Put everything into effect, and..." She turned to him and squatted down, peering at him curiously.

"And...?" Kouichi turned to her, staring softly.

She was about to continue when Izumi rushed over, breathless. "Sorry to bug you two," she apologized, holding out two packages to Kako. "From Ichiro," she explained, then handed Kouichi his small package. "Kouichi, you have to open yours right away, but Ichiro never said when Kako had to open hers..."

Kouichi stared at the newspaper wrapping before gently undoing it. He could hear the vicious tears of the foil of Kako's packages. _Vicious_, he thought with a smile. In his mind, he imagined a giant puzzle. The piece he thought didn't fit actually _did_ fit. He just hadn't seen it before.

Kako gasped and Kouichi could have sworn a frog jumped in his throat. At the same time, they murmured, "This is-"

-------------------------------------

A/N-

When creating complex plots, the problem is that you have all those loose ends to tie up. Some are meant to remain loose, but not all can remain loose. I've tied up less than I'm making. I'm guessing less than ten more chapters from here.

You'll have to excuse the chapter. Didn't mean for it to turn out this way. Did I mention I don't like this last part? It's so...not...cool, for lack of intelligible words.

Thanks for the review: **GemmaniGirl**

Review or PM or Flame.


	41. Revival

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

Dedication: To Aurel, who is turning one year older. Feel old? Feel the power?

-------------------------------------

Revival

-------------------------------------

..._the hell are these things?_

_They're called digital monsters_. _Digimon_. _I know you're familiar with them_.

_Haha, very funny_. Kouji peered at the screen, eyes half-lidded with sleep. _Hey, careful with what you're doing to my body! I still need it!_ He managed a glare as he saw a cut on his wrist. _That better heal nicely_.

His eyes left the screen to scan his surroundings, as had been ritual for the past hours. Even if he couldn't see Duskmon, he could feel the digimon smirking. He could even tell the digimon was forcing his shell to smirk, too.

_Come on, I'm not a smirker!_ Scowling, Kouji returned his gaze to the screen.

_Right_. _You'll have to excuse my mistake_. '_Scowl_' _was read as_ '_smirk_.'

_When I get my hands on you_...

_Kouichi will first_.

At the sound of his brother's name, Kouji fell quiet. He hadn't forgotten his brother...far from that. The fact was that he was dreading to see him again. Smiling bitterly to himself, Kouji asked aloud, "Do we really have to suffer this twice?"

_Yes, strange, isn't it? First your brother, now you_.

"Shut up," Kouji said in a loud voice, glaring up at the gray, unchanging sky.

He had never hated gray more in his life.

The truth was the truth, and Duskmon had been correct in saying what he had. _But do we have to suffer this twice? Why couldn't I just have been possessed by Lobomon?_ He let out a frustrated sigh and turned away from the screen.

Duskmon offered an answer. _Because Lobomon wouldn't be trusted by Lucemon_. _It's obvious Ophanimon would send him to spy, and even if he was possessed to possess you_..._well, the concept is tricky_. _Where are you going?_

"Is this my mind?" Kouji asked, standing up. He couldn't understand the concept, though he imagined it to be simplicity itself. He couldn't understand how a sky could always be gray, or how a screen could pop out of nowhere and show him the outside world when he demanded for it. Duskmon had told him he couldn't demand a way out, but Kouji had tried. After all, what reason did he have to trust Duskmon?

_Where are you going_? Duskmon demanded again.

Did it matter? Kouji shrugged. "Somewhere." _Away from here_, he thought, hoping Duskmon hadn't heard. Then again, it didn't matter much if Duskmon _had_ heard. Nothing seemed to matter much anymore. He shrugged to himself and began to walk around aimlessly. It all seemed like an exact replica of Kouichi's neighborhood in gray. _I hate that color_, Kouji told himself for the who knew what time. It wasn't like anyone was keeping track.

He walked down the seemingly familiar street for what seemed like minutes (but no one was keeping track of time there, so it could have just as well been seconds), then came to a sudden stop. Something was wrong. _It just ends here and repeats?_ Kouji, now annoyed, turned around and walked back. Several seconds later, he was back where he started.

Kouichi's house apparently didn't exist in this world.

Kouji looked at what other options he had. _Duskmon, if you're doing this_, _I'm gonna _kill_ you_, he thought, scanning his surroundings with skeptical eyes. There _had_ to be some way out. _Any_ way. _Well, there's the sewer grate down there, but I think I prefer that street over there_, Kouji thought, wondering how the sewer would look like. _Probably gray_.

He turned into the street and looked around, feeling strangely nostalgic, but at the same time afraid. "Hello," Kouji whispered to himself, mainly, as he encountered a deserted cul-de-sac. "This was never...on...Kouichi's street," the boy observed, swallowing at the dead silence.

He didn't ever think he could be so afraid. In fact, Kouji was sure he had never been so afraid for _himself_. Aware, yes, but never afraid for himself. _Maybe because I always considered myself the strongest and the one that had to take care of everyone when there was trouble_, Kouji told himself. Now, he wondered if everyone else needed protecting more than he did. The bandana boy broke into a grin. "Yeah, the probably do," he told himself reassuringly, _and they'll pull through_.

He examined the gray surroundings, and decided to investigate the houses. There didn't seem like too many in total, and he was bored. The fear dissipated and was replaced by and overwhelming amount of curiosity that made Kouji wonder whether the place was bad for his health, what with all the emotional switches. Making sure his emotions were in check, he picked a random house and walked up to it.

Immediately, he froze, recognizing it. _Takuya's?_ The boy stared in wonder before running away and staring at the other houses.

He recognized _all_ of them. And right smack dab in the middle was Kouichi's house. _Who cares about Takuya!_ Furiously, Kouji ran towards the house, threw the door open, then yelled, "Mom! Kouichi!"

No one answered.

"I'M HOME!"

No one.

Kouji let out an annoyed growl and raced back outside. _Maybe I should have gone to Takuya's first_, he thought, racing into the Kanbara's house.

It was just as neat as Kouichi's had been, and just as empty. Kouji tried not to be frustrated as he ran back out, checking house after house. Izumi, Tomoki, Junpei...even _Kako_...all their houses were empty.

Finally defeated, Kouji walked outside and staggered to the steps of his brother's house. He stared at them for a while before letting out a gentle sigh and sitting down, staring emptily at the ground in front of him.

Gray.

He felt a certain need to just stand up and let out an uncensored string of profanities. He could, if he really wanted to. No one would know but Duskmon. "What I wouldn't do for some blue...or white...or pink, even," Kouji thought. His eyes suddenly widened. _Pink...? Oh, yeah_. He let out a chuckle. "Like Kouichi's room," he said aloud, remembering the entire painting incident. _But it was pure genius!_

Kouji wondered if there was an end to this. He stood up, and realized his feet felt sore. He hadn't even been walking for so long, had he? _Whatever_, the boy thought, shoving his hands in his pocket and staring at the ground as he walked back.

He didn't know what to expect anymore.

Kouji stopped, halfway out of the cul-de-sac, and looked up to his left. A two-story house stood towering before him. It was white, and Kouji was greatly reminded of his own house. Shrugging, he walked towards the building and opened the door.

_Yeah, home_, he thought, leaving the door open and heading to the stairs, up to where his room would be. He threw the door open and headed straight for the bed, not taking a single glance at his surroundings. _Sleep_, thought Kouji, falling back onto the bed and shutting his eyes. _Sleep_.

He fell asleep quickly to the smell of fresh air and a distinct buzzing sound that seemed so familiar.

And just as his eyes shut, a light from the closet flashed brightly, only once.

It was an all too familiar feel. _His_ house.

-------------------------------------

"This is _it?_" scowled Kouichi and Kako at the same time, glaring at what was inside the box. "What kind of lame gift is this?" Both pulled out a folded piece of paper and threw the box aside.

"He wrapped it in _nice_ wrapping for nothing!" Kako shrieked at the same time Kouichi muttered, "I should have known by the newspaper wrapping."

"A _note_. _Ichiro is lame_," the two growled before exchanging confused glances. "You too?"

"Comparing time!" shouted Kako, sitting so her legs were dangling over the hole and shoving her paper, now unfolded, towards Kouichi. "Let's see how original Ichiro is."

"Do you have, 'Dear Kako, I know you probably hate me right now for extravagantly wrapping up a box with a mere paper, but do forgive me. I intend to make it up to you with the best knowledge ever.' Or did you get something stupider?" Kouichi asked, glaring at the paper. "And what knowledge? He sure fooled me..."

Izumi watched the two with amusement. _So cute_. "If only I had my camera," Izumi whispered disappointedly.

"I could sell this for major money."

She whirled around and glared up at Hideki. "You've got a camera?"

Grinning, Hideki drew a camera out of his pocket. "I keep it with me all the time," he told her, aiming it at Kako and Kouichi. That only attracted more people.

"Well...what's in this?" Curiously, Kako opened her second package and stared at it for several seconds. "He...knows I don't wear jewelry, right?"

Kouichi stared at the contents of the box jealously. Letting out a huff, he muttered, "Well why can't _I_ get something like that?"

"You want jewelry?" Kako asked, raising an eyebrow.

The boy reddened. After sputtering unintelligibly for several seconds, he screamed, "THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!"

Grinning, Kako poked his shoulder. "Riiiight."

"Anyone else notice how Kouichi's back to normal now?" Takuya shouted loudly, looking away from the two.

Kouichi let out an indignant snort and Kako stared at him, one eyebrow raised again. After looking him over curiously, she demanded, "What?"

Calmly, he returned, "What?"

"What?" Kako snapped again. When Kouichi didn't respond, she rose to her feet and glared down at him. "I'm not stupid! What does he mean you're back to _normal_ now? What were you doing before?" she demanded.

"Kako, get over here!" Kanaye shouted. Had he not been Kanaye, Kouichi would have probably hugged him, but he was Kanaye, and that settled matters.

Still furious with Kouichi, Kako stormed towards the other boy, only stopping by Takuya to mutter, "You _better_ tell me what happened..."

"NOW," Kanaye barked, glaring at her.

"I'll do what I _want_, thanks!" Kako retorted, returning the glare.

Both continued their staring contest until Naoko clapped her hands twice. "Hey, people," snapped Naoko, looking from Kanaye to Kako, "we're here for a reason. Kako, do you have a digivice thing?"

The other girl just blinked. "Wha...?"

"So it's _hers_?" Kanaye muttered, eyeing Kako with obvious dislike.

Noticing this attitude, Kako stuck out her tongue childishly. "_Just_ because you don't want me as a leader, because you _know_ I'll totally out rule you-"

"Who said anything about leader?" Naoko muttered, shaking her head in disbelief.

Kako just glared. "What's the point of this again."

_I wish I knew_, thought Naoko as she handed the remaining digivice to Kako. "We already gave Shinya his, and we have an extra that Ichiro gave us," she explained, dropping it in Kako's outstretched hand. "Thought it might be yours."

Kako examined it, nearly jumping back and yelling when the small screen shone a bright flash of white. She would have dropped it and broken it, had Kanaye's hand not been out under hers.

"_Idiot_," Kanaye snapped, handing her back the item. "Stop being so careless." Louder, he added, "Kimura, I feel sorry for you! Not even-" Kanaye stopped and stared at Kouichi before shaking his head. "He's just as bad as you."

"Thank you," said Kako, obviously satisfied by this. After tossing it up and catching it, she pocketed the D-Tector and turned around just in time to avoid Kouichi flying back into her. Kanaye's luck wasn't too high, and he took the hit instead, suffering as soon Takuya followed, along with Shinya. She turned to them and her eyes narrowed. "Spill it out. And Shinya, give me the sword, would you? It's a good way to threaten the truth out of people." She stepped forward and relinquished Shinya of the metal.

Kouichi's mouth opened, but his face reddened and he looked away. "Shut up, Takuya," was all he said.

The glare intensified. "Takuya..."

Feeling like nothing under Kako's gaze, Takuya shrugged. _She really is worse than Izumi_, he thought as he finally confessed, "Kouichi...was really upset about Kouji...while we were securing our point." It wasn't a lie...he just wasn't including all of the facts. "Shinya, get off of me."

Shinya scowled as his brother pushed him off. "I think-" he started.

"Shut up. No one cares what you think."

"I'm telling Mom!" shouted the boy.

"Bah! Mom's not here, idiot!"

"I'm _really_ telling Mom!"

"Yeah...right...where Mom is Lucemon?"

"TAKUYA!" everyone shouted, obviously disturbed by the thought.

The goggle boy reddened and returned, "I'm just pointing out that our mom isn't here!"

"Quiet!" Shinya suddenly yelled. When everyone turned to him in surprise, he said, "I think...we need to sit down...and talk one at a time, because we're too big of a group." The thought was reasonable, and Rai nodded in agreement. Seeing this as a sign, everyone sat down where they were, save Takuya and Kouichi, who were thrown off by a scowling Kanaye.

After they were all situated and staring at Rai (who was still standing beside Hideki), Tomoki's hand shot up into the air. Too surprised to speak, Rai inclined her head in his direction.

"I'm _still_ confused," the boy complained. "I lost track ages ago."

Biting her lip to hold back a sigh, Rai began to wonder how to explain this. As if to rescue her, Hideki stood up and walked up to her. "I'll take care of it," he offered, and turned to everyone. "Let's review. Lucemon has been gaining power. Lucemon wants a final match between us, so he told us...rather, _Rai_, and both sides have been preparing for a while now. Think of it as...World War I.

"Now, there are certain things Lucemon has plotted behind our backs. He doesn't intend for it to be a fair fight." Hideki paused, and his gaze fell on Kouichi as he continued, "Take Kouji for example. So you see, we have to expect _anything_ and _everything_." Another pause. "Any questions?"

Tomoki just stared expectantly, waiting for Hideki to continue.

"What _else_ is there?" Hideki scowled.

"The prophecy! The points! The Area! The Core! Lucemon! Kouji! The egg, Duskmon, Lobomon, Kouji's D-Tector..." Tomoki would have listed more, but Hideki seemed to give in.

"Okay, okay...in that order. The prophecy...well, they _always_ have a prophecy and stuff like that. Don't you understand how the Digital World works?" A scowl appeared on his face before he added, "It's something from ancient times, so not even _I_ understand it. The points connect to form the Area, which is the battleground _Lucemon_ set up. Meaning that it's rigged for sure. The Core, which we are at, is the center of the Area. Lucemon is the idiot bad guy you guys will fight. Kouji is twerp's brother. The egg is somewhere. Duskmon is gone. Lobomon is somewhere. Kouji's D-Tector is somewhere."

Rai let out an exasperated sigh. Her palm came into contact with her forehead. "Maybe I should have explained," she muttered. Reluctantly, she walked over to Hideki and placed both hands on his shoulder. "Sit."

After Hideki did as he was told, Kako called out, "Lobomon's in the egg, if that helps."

"And the egg is in Kouji," Kouichi added. "Duskmon isn't gone, either. He's...he possessed Kouji."

"Did I mention my information isn't up to date?" squeaked Hideki, noticing the glares he received, especially from Tomoki.

"All information save your pictures of Kako and me," muttered Kouichi. He sent a murderous glare towards Hideki. "HINT, HINT."

Grinning, Hideki replied, "No way in Lucemon's hell am I giving those up! I'd sooner be sacrificed!"

"That can be arranged," Kako retorted.

The grin disappeared. Glaring at his sister, Hideki's eyes narrowed. "You wouldn't."

"I'm not promising anything!" The girl smiled triumphantly, then turned to Rai. "Well, we covered everything _but_ the D-Tector. What's up with that?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

Rai's lips were pressed tightly together. The look in her eyes was a distant one, and for a second Kako thought she didn't hear. When the girl was about to call out Rai's name, Kouichi's hand silenced her, and she realized what was the real case.

A sigh escaped Rai, and as her eyes shut, she shook her head. "I don't know..." she admitted in a whisper. "I don't know. I'm not sure of anything anymore. I..." When her eyes opened again, her gaze focused on Hideki. "Things don't seem to add up..."

"I hear you there," muttered Kouichi, hand dropping to his side. "Kanaye, what are you guys going to do?" he suddenly asked, looking up at the other boy, who was to his left.

Shrugging, Kanaye replied in a bitter voice, "There isn't much else to do. We'll fight. Ai is still with Lucemon, and LadyDevimon _is_ a force to be reckoned with, sadly enough. Besides..." A grim smile appeared as he met Kouichi's gaze. "She owes me...a _lot_. Be glad you've got Kako-"

"WHAT IS THIS ABOUT?" Kako suddenly screeched, glaring at him.

"-instead of Ai. Then again, Kako's a completely different nightmare," finished Kanaye, now smiling smugly and openly.

"You _idiot_!" Furiously, Kako jumped into her feet, but Kouichi grabbed onto her arm, a frantic look on his face. "Let me go!"

"Aw, how cute!" Hideki commented, snickering and bringing out his camera.

"NO WAY!" Kouichi shouted, letting go of Kako to lunge at Hideki.

Rai watched in amazement as Kako and Kouichi were both restrained by people sitting around them. _Impossible_, she thought, watching Takuya and Junpei force Kouichi to sit back down. The boy was absolutely red, looking to the side in embarrassment. Kako, on the other hand, didn't seem to care she was causing a ruckus. The combined strength of Izumi and Naoko didn't do anything. What was more, Kanaye didn't seem perturbed at all. He sat there calmly, as if drinking tea, and nodded at Kako.

_Impossible_, Rai thought again, managing to find a seat on a nearby boulder. _It's all impossible_. _How can they be so calm_..._? Why am I so worried? This is how it should be, right? Hideki_..._won't die_. _I'm just worried_. _Too stressed_. _Maybe it's because of all the papers I've been grading lately_...

Her breath escaped her for a split second, before returning like a prolonged wave, crashing into her. Rai lurched forward, squeezing her eyes shut and closing her mouth, hoping to stop the pain. _Please_, _let everything be alright_.

"Rai...?"

Her eyes widened, recognizing the voice. "I'm fine," she said quickly, sitting up and opening her mouth to say more.

Hideki smiled and shook his head. "I know," he returned softly, leaning forward. "I just wanted to-"

"Where'd the sword go?" Kako cried, looking around her.

Kouichi, eyes wide, jumped to his feet. Pointing accusingly at Kako, he demanded, "You _lost_ my sword?"

"Don't point!"

His hand dropped to his side. Again, Kouichi asked, "You _lost_ my sword?" His eyes narrowed into a glare, and he took a step towards Kako, which resulted in him tripping.

Over his sword.

Kouichi crashed down, wincing and turning his face to the side. _Ow_, he thought, scrambling back onto his feet and taking the sword into his hand. "Uh...what am I supposed to do? Carry this around? I'd be better off without it..."

"Just keep it!" Kako snapped, walking up to him and hitting his head. "Idiot! You have a bruise..." Her hand reached up to the side of his forehead.

The boy shrugged and stepped back, trying not to cringe at Kako's touch. "I'm fine," he insisted, before sitting back down and staring at his sword.

Rai inhaled slowly, watching as Takuya was held back by Junpei and Tomoki, while Shinya stuck his tongue out at his older brother from behind Izumi. Ritsuo and Naoko were absorbed in a lengthy discussion of what sounded like their digivices, while Fujitaka and Kanaye quietly discussed other matters. Only Kako and Kouichi sat, side by side, not speaking, not looking.

"They're growing up," she whispered softly.

Hideki just nodded. "It's funny when I think about it. Twerp and Kako...years ago, they were only half of what they were now, but I always felt the twerp...Kouichi...he...made me feel stupid. I just realized a while ago that he's still a kid," he told Rai in a low voice.

"A kid..." Rai bit her lip. "Will kids be ready to fight Lucemon?"

"What were they doing before?" Hideki answered softly.

-------------------------------------

A persistent buzz ran through the air.

_Damn it all_, Kouji thought. He winced and rolled over in the bed. "Not now, Kouichi..." he muttered. "Give me ten minutes..."

The buzz remained, growing louder by the second. The air felt strangely humid, more so than Kouji remembered. Groaning, he literally rolled out of bed and onto the floor, laying there for a few seconds, blinking and tangled in his blanket. As soon as his eyes adjusted to the new light, he stood up and threw the covers back on the bed.

"Welcome home, Kouji," he muttered to himself, staring at the floor and sighing. "Must've fallen asleep. Where's-wait..." Kouji cringed as he realized he was still stuck in his own 'personal hell,' as he decided to call it. "Then what's with all the light...?" he wondered aloud. Last he remembered, it was gray outside. Even if he _had_ woken up from his nightmare, the sunlight didn't ever shine so bright in his room, no matter the time of day. It was all rather depressing when he chose to think about it, which he never did.

_Things just get worse and worse_, Kouji thought with a grim smile, laughing bitterly to himself. His eyes scanned the room before falling on the closet. A sickeningly white light flooded through from the cracks, emanating more than heat.

"Why?" He took a step towards the door, eyes narrowing. "Why?" repeated the boy, demandingly. "What do you have to do with _any_ of this?"

Kouji's breath hitched in his throat. His fingers trembled even as he reached out and grasped the doorknob. _Why am I nervous?_ A breath was drawn deeper than ever before and held as he opened the door and threw it aside, holding his breath expectantly. _What...?_

The light extinguished itself. At least, that was what Kouji thought. When he released his breath, he nearly collapsed, not realizing he had held it longer than he originally thought. The light now came from the top of all his bandana boxes. Absentmindedly, Kouji's hand went to remove the bandana from his head. Fingers ran over the stitching on the side.

_'Never give up. Never look down. Lose this and you'll lose a lot more_.'

Almost immediately, Kouji looked up, surprised that the words entered his mind so easily. He had only seen the words once, hadn't he...?

The cloth crumpled in his hands. _No way will I lose this_, he told himself, eyes slipping shut. With renewed courage, Kouji pocketed his bandana and took the first box out of the closet. It was lowered to the floor carefully, but _still_ managed to land with a loud thud. Trembling again, Kouji carefully removed the flaps, whispering encouraging words to himself and trying to imagine what it was.

The light grew brighter as all the flaps were undone. Kouji swore he went blind for those few minutes. He wasn't even sure when the light died down; it was enough that it had. His eyes opened, though he didn't remember closing them. Kouji let out a relieved sigh and collapsed onto his knees, hands on the rim of the box.

"D-Tector," he whispered, smiling to himself. "I get my...my D-Tector."

The smile faded.

_How?_ Kouji rose to his feet and gingerly picked the blue and white D-Tector up into his own hands. "How is it you came from the box of _bandanas_?" he questioned aloud.

_Figure it out_?

Kouji cringed. _No_, he replied to Duskmon, eyes scanning the room in case.

_Figures_. Again, he could feel the ominous smirk. _You still have a long way to go_.

"We'll _see_ about that!" Kouji retorted, furiously kicking the bandana box to the side.

An indignant sound echoed through the room and Kouji froze. _What the_...

There was a rustle, and the top few bandanas fell out of the box and onto the floor. "Do you mind?" came a familiar, now high-pitched, voice. A round, pink thing popped out of the box, followed by a familiar staff.

"NO," Kouji suddenly yelled, jumping back. "Duskmon, what is this?" Try as he might, he received no answer.

In front of Kouji stood Piximon, shaking a bandana off his head. "Hello! That was a refreshing nap, yup, yup!" said the digimon, beaming happily at Kouji. "And whom might you be?"

_This can't be happening_, Kouji thought, staring at his D-Tector in horror. Out of desperation, he allowed the stupidest question to escape his mouth. "Piximon isn't the rookie form of Lobomon, is he?"

Then again, there _are_ no such things as 'stupid questions.'

-------------------------------------

A/N-

I thought I'd cut it short here because...it wouldn't be right to continue! Everything's twisting, and I can't really stop it, so...sorry. .:bows:. Not the best chapter, I know. Only Kouji's part seemed okay. The rest seemed so...spontaneous.

We were doing a career thing in school a few days ago. I got Writing/Editing, and a bunch of things like Performing Arts and Design and such. Now, the only thing I'm interested in for Performing Arts would be Voice Acting, but they _conveniently_ don't list that. Bah! Who said all the _actors_ can steal the voice roles? XP And being an author sounds hard, so I'd be having a back-up in case. But I _do_ have an idea for an original story...

Thank you for the reviews! I'm just extremely happy right now, so BIG THANK YOU to: **GemmaniGirl, x.XWeirdxnxWiseX.x**, **The Light's Refrain**

Review or PM or Flame.


	42. Sharing Is Caring

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Sharing Is Caring

-------------------------------------

"Where's the sword?"

"Shinya's got it!"

"Shinya! How many times do I have to tell you to stop playing with sharp objects?"

"Takuya, calm down. He'll le-oh!"

"Great going, shrimp. Need a Band-Aid?"

"I'm not shrimp! I'm krill!"

"Hey, krill! Hand the sword over!"

"But I want to play with it!"

Kouichi let out a small sigh and gave in. "Only a while longer," he told Shinya, giving the boy a look that clearly was a warning.

In reply, Shinya beamed and continued slashing the sword forward, occasionally charging towards Takuya while letting out a battle cry, only to fall backward.

"He can't support the weight yet," Kako remarked. Her grin was half exposed, one eyebrow was raised, and amusement twinkled brightly in her eyes. "Kind of amusing."

Kouichi shrugged. "Yeah..." His voice trailed off with his eyes, moving from Shinya to the sky. "It's getting dark..."

A dull thud startled Kouichi. He whipped his head to look to his side, finding Kako on her back, rubbing the back of her head and scowling up at the sky. It was hard enough to swallow the comment, but the smile was harder. Lips pressed tightly together, Kouichi helped her back up. "Be careful," he murmured.

"Yeah, yeah..." Kako muttered, accepting his hand and shaking her head. Quietly, she agreed, "It _is_ pretty dark."

"Perfect for Lucemon's lot to attack us now."

She sent a sharp look in Kouichi's direction. "You don't think-"

He shrugged again. "It's a possibility," Kouichi said softly, shutting his eyes.

Kako let out an uneasy laugh. "Um, remember those empty packages we got from Ichiro? What knowledge was he talking about?"

An irritable look passed Kouichi's face as he opened his eyes and muttered, "I don't know."

"Oh."

Silence passed between them, creating a small rift. Without warning, Kouichi began, "Sometimes I wonder if we're even existing right now. Are we real? In the Digital World, we're digital, aren't we? Everything is, right? But in the Digital World, _I don't feel digital_. I just _am_. Here...I..."

Silence befell them again. Kako stood up and stared down at Kouichi with uncertainty. _He needs time to think_, she told herself, walking to find Shinya and get the sword back. _After all_, _he might have impaled Takuya three times by now_.

Kouichi was slow to stand up. An internal debate seemed to be rushing through him, and it wasn't just on the issue of whether to sit or stand. Finally, he kept sitting down and shut his eyes. _I wonder where he is_, he thought, mind drifting to his brother. Memories kept coming at the most inopportune times.

"Real pretty, isn't it?"

"I guess," Kouichi muttered, not in the mood to talk. His eyes opened and turned to Naoko. "Are you guys seriously going to fight Lucemon?"

"Of course!" she snorted, looking at him in her own little exasperated way. "What do you think we'd do? Stand at the sidelines?" When Kouichi remained quiet, Naoko let out a laugh. "Hah! Fat chance. Besides, that isn't Kanaye's way..."

"What?" Kouichi asked, eyes widening.

Their gazes locked. "If he has a debt to pay, he'll pay it," Naoko said in a low voice, "and Kanaye plans to pay _all_ of it."

Still startled, Kouichi whispered, "There's no debt. Anywhere."

Naoko just smiled. "You'd be surprised," she murmured. "Visiting hours are up. Lucemon'll be here soon." She stood up, waved carelessly, and walked off to find Fujitaka.

Kouichi rose to his feet soon after. _Debt?_ He shook his head. It didn't seem like Kanaye at all.

-------------------------------------

So many things...a balance...

Order. Restoration. Justice. Time.

Time...

"Do we have time?" Rai whispered softly. Seated on the only boulder miles around, she could keep a watch on what was happening. Currently, the Kanbara brothers were rolling about in their battle, with Kouichi's sword laying precariously about. Izumi and Tomoki were trying with their best efforts to stop the two, and Junpei had fallen asleep. Kako and Hideki were having another sibling fight, occasionally turning to Kanaye for help, Naoko had fallen asleep by Fujitaka whom Ritsuo was talking to.

They were all present and accounted for. Rai let out a sigh. "Just the twins," she muttered. "It's always th-...wait...where's Kouichi?" she suddenly exclaimed, sitting up straight and scanning the land before her. _Shinya, Takuya...Fujitaka...Kako...the sword...Junpei...where is he?_ Biting her lower lip, Rai did her best not to panic.

A quiet voice made her jump. "What about me?" Kouichi asked, staring up at Rai with tired eyes.

She was still recovering from shock when she saw his eyes. When her heart finally stopped hammering in her chest, Rai forced a smile and shook her head. "Nothing...nothing..." she tried, but the words came out dry and forced.

"Everyone's pretty tired," Kouichi murmured. "It's getting dark. Naoko even thinks Lucemon will attack soon."

Another sigh escaped Rai. "It _is_ his style," she admitted morosely. "It won't be too long now. What do you think?"

Kouichi remained quiet. Rai had to look at him to make sure the boy was still awake. "Kouichi...?" she tried again.

Finally, in a voice so quiet Rai had to lean down to hear, he murmured "I don't know."

_Nothing else?_ She nodded and returned her gaze to the space in front of her just in time to see Takuya trip into one of the Drimogemon's holes. A wince ran through her head. Rai turned back to Kouichi and, for the sake of conversation, asked, "Don't know about what?"

Her question was met with another question. "Aren't you afraid?" asked Kouichi, eyes narrowing childishly onto Rai in curiosity.

She was taken aback. "What?"

Kouichi lowered his head and asked, "Aren't you afraid that...you'll lose something? Not just a person...but a _feeling_...something you have right now, that you can _feel_ right now, but probably won't be able to feel after this?" His voice was surprisingly loud, considering he was looking down.

_A feeling_..._Hah, no duh?_ A pink tinge appeared on Rai's cheeks. She turned her gaze back and watched Tomoki and Junpei, now wide-awake, pull up Takuya. "I don't...know what you mean."

"That's okay. I don't either," the boy confessed, still not looking up.

Her eyes slipped shut and all she could hear was her steady breathing as she tried to gather her courage to tell the truth. When she did, Rai kept her eyes shut and said, "I know...what it's like. We all lose feelings as we grow up. But there will be ways to remember those feelings. A book, a song...a place. Even a person. Memories...you just can't forget a feeling like that. It'll always be in the recesses of-" She stopped and looked to the side, where Kouichi should have been. A twitch.

Hideki was looking up at her, eyes shut and nodding. His arms were folded across his chest. When he noticed she stopped speaking, he cracked one eye open. "You're done?"

Rai reddened. "You...little..." She hopped off the rock and landed clumsily on her feet, causing her to trip forward onto Hideki. They both fell down, Rai on Hideki, until she rolled off, stood up, and kicked his side. "Idiot!"

"Ow! I give up! I was just going to get you because twerp didn't have the courage to tell you about that..." Hideki pointed to the sky, where dark clouds were centered right above them. "Kind of suspicious, wouldn't you think? I've never seen _black_ clouds. Especially not ones with wings." He pushed her foot away and stood up.

Rai stared unblinkingly. "So...soon?" she whispered.

He just looked at her expectantly. "So?"

"But..."

A yell caught their attention.

"It's Kouji!"

_Someone_..._someone...Takuya!_ Recognizing the voice, she yelled back, "Don't go anywhere! Just stay together in case!" Rai ran forward, making sure Hideki was behind her.

They were all grouped together in front of the sword, Kouichi at the front, glaring at his possessed twin. "Duskmon," the boy growled, eyes narrowing dangerously.

"Kouichi, calm down," Kako hissed. She stood behind him, a disturbed look on her face.

Rai pushed her way to the front. "Duskmon?" she repeated. "I'll remember never to let you _ten_ light-years within our information again."

A chuckle escaped Kouji. Kouichi shook his head and said, "So you can't digivolve then?" It was more of a statement.

"Actually..." Kouji lifted a hand.

_Kouji_. _I can't call him that anymore_, Kouichi thought, withdrawing his D-Tector and bringing out his sword from that.

"What a fitting weapon."

Kouichi's eyes widened at his mistake. _The _other_ sword!_ He nearly dropped the one in his hand in an effort to reach the other.

"Yes, for a fitting match, wouldn't you say?" said Kouji. His hand clamped down on the hilt of the sword, which shone an almost obsidian black.

"It changed color," Kouichi noted, unsure of what to think.

Kouji just smirked. "Look at your own blade." In Kouichi's hand, the blade had turned a slightly transparent white. "Indeed, fitting. Army of Darkness," he murmured, pointing the blade at Kouichi. Then, using his free hand, he pointed at himself. "Army of Light. Pity it isn't opposite day." The smirk turned into a sneer. "Unfortunately, we won't be able to battle at the moment. Our fight awaits, Kouichi." The free hand turned, palm facing towards Kouichi.

"Right _now_!" Kouichi yelled, taking a step to charge at Kouji. He stopped in hesitation. _If I hurt him, will I hurt Kouji?_ The thought scared him. Brushing it aside, he took another step forward and stopped.

Eyes widened. Gasps were heard.

Under his feet, all Kouichi could see was black. He swallowed and looked up. "What...are..." he tried, but his throat turned dry, refusing him the ability to speak.

"Until next time," Kouji whispered, smiling that sickening smile.

All Kouichi remembered next was darkness. Darkness, and an empty stomach.

-------------------------------------

Kouji stared furiously at the pink digimon in front of him. "Go away!" he yelled.

Piximon, fluttering in the air above the bandana box, stared from the box to Kouji. "Doesn't work that way."

He wasn't sure what was possessing him then, but Kouji pushed Piximon down into the box, not caring if bandanas spilled out in the process. "Get back in there!" he screamed, trying to put the flaps back on.

Eventually, after a few scratches and a well-aimed psy bomb from Piximon, Kouji was on the ground and Piximon was glaring at the boy. "Hmph! Don't you have any manners?"

Several times, the bandana boy opened his mouth to say something, but quickly shut it. Looking away from Piximon, Kouji murmured, "You don't remember?"

"Remember what?"

"I _killed_ you."

Piximon stared at Kouji for a long while before bursting out into laughter.

Kouji scowled at this and stood up. The anger quickly dissipated at the sight of the digimon. "It's not funny," he insisted in a weak voice. For some reason, he wanted to laugh too. Maybe it was the hopelessness of the situation, or that he had gone crazy. He wasn't sure. He wanted to laugh.

"If you killed me, how would I remember? As far as I know, I've been in the Digital World all my life. Maybe another Piximon?" Piximon tilted his body to the side and stared at Kouji curiously. "You don't seem like a murderer, anyway."

At this, Kouji blushed. "W-well...I knocked y-I mean...Piximon out. Duskmon..." _I feel like I'm talking to a kid_. Shrugging, Kouji muttered, "Duskmon's possessing my body. He's the one that actually killed Piximon, but it's because I asked him to." Here he paused and decided he had volunteered enough information.

Piximon wasn't the least dissatisfied. "I see," the digimon said slowly.

"So how'd you come out of the box?" asked Kouji, raising an eyebrow.

Beaming up at Kouji, the pink digimon just shrugged. "I _don't_ know!" he laughed.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T KNOW?" Again, whatever had possessed him before returned. Kouji yanked on Piximon's wings gently, just hard enough to hurt the digimon.

Piximon used his staff to free himself. Kouji winced, rubbing his hand as the digimon flew onto his desk and stared at him, satisfied. "I was hoping you knew, but...we get to be buddies now! Let's solve the mystery together!"

_I preferred the old Piximon_, Kouji thought, staring at Piximon in dread. _How much longer?_

-------------------------------------

Kako yawned and rolled over in the bed. Somewhere, she heard a bell ring, and guessed it was an alarm. _No school_, she told herself. _I'll sleep as long as I want to_.

A muffled, drowsy giggle escaped her at the thought of missing school. Again, she rolled over in the bed and half opened her eyes. A blurry image of a boy was in front of her. _Who...is...this?_ Her eyes opened fully, and she nearly screamed.

_Bad dream_, Kako told herself, sitting up in bed and glaring at Kouji. "What's with you? Where's Kouichi?" she demanded.

Kouji rose one eyebrow. "Kouichi...?" he echoed. His eyes held surprise. "Kouichi's gone, Kako."

For a while, Kako stared at him, unsure of what to believe. He didn't sound at all like a possessed Kouji, and if it was a dream, it was a pretty realistic one. She must have pinched herself over ten times by now.

"What do you _mean_ he's gone?" Kako spat, rising her to feet.

He took a step forward, and she fell back onto the bed, surprised. "He's gone, meaning he's _gone_. Kouichi's not here anymore..."

"TOO CLOSE!" Kako yelled, using her hand to push his shoulder and send him spinning away. That accomplished, she jumped onto the bed and glared down at him. "You're a horrible actor, Duskmon! The real Kouji wouldn't be so...perverted!"

Cursing, Kouji pushed away from the wall and looked up at her. "My, my...nothing gets past you."

Kako just stuck out her tongue.

"But really, he'll be as good as gone soon. You owe me a lot more than that last favor, Kako," he murmured, taking a seat in a nearby chair that Kako was sure hadn't been there before.

Taking this as a civilized act, Kako sat down on the edge of the bed. "What are you playing at? You weren't this powerful before," she said, still glaring at him.

Shrugging, he replied, "I wasn't a lot of things before. Especially not Kouji. You'd be surprised to learn how perverted he can be. Back on track, _possessing_ a body disables digivolution if you're in the real world. To compensate for this weakness, Lucemon has given me a certain amount of power."

Her eyes were tiring of constant glaring. Kako gave up glaring and muttered in an annoyed voice, "Yeah, and then what?"

He hadn't been meant to hear that, but Kouji did, and laughed. "And then I have the ability to make all your lives miserable. You're at your weakest now, you realize." He paused, awaiting her response.

"I am _not_!" Kako shouted furiously, jumping to her feet. It was just as he expected. She would throw a tantrum until she realized she couldn't do anything. "I bet I could beat you up right now!"

Instead of doing what he usually would have done, like laugh, Kouji shook his head. "You're separated from your friends. What can you accomplish even _if_ you managed to defeat me?"

Kako opened her mouth, but nothing came out. "Oh," she mumbled in defeat, realizing his point. "I see..."

"Precisely. Now what do you plan to do about it?" He sat back in the chair, arms folded, gazing at Kako, observing her as she was observing him in her own manner.

She sighed and fell back on the bed. "You're weird," Kako muttered, staring at the ceiling vacantly. "You know that, though. I've got just one question, and based on that I'll figure out what to do."

A snort escaped Kouji. "What is it?"

Kako sat up. Her eyes bore into the lifeless ones of Kouji's, searchingly. "Whose side are you on, Duskmon?" she queried, standing up and walking up to him.

He seemed troubled for a second-almost _human_. Before Kako could notice anything else, Kouji's eyes shut, and his face became calm. With a small laugh, he replied, "Funny thing is, I'm not so sure myself." And then his eyes opened. "So what will you do now?"

"Actually, I was hoping you'd pick one or the other," Kako admitted. Biting her lower lip, she took a step back. "But...better safe than sorry, right?" A forced grin appeared.

Kouji seemed smug himself. "You're a smart girl, Kako. Pity, really," he told her in a soft voice. One hand raised.

Kako's eyes widened.

The next thing she knew, her world was gray.

-------------------------------------

"Everyone okay?" Takuya whispered into the darkness. He cursed, being unable to see, and fumbled around to find his pockets, and then his D-Tector. Seconds later, as Agunimon, a flame lit up the cavern for him to see.

As far as he could tell, everyone was present and accounted for, save Hideki, Rai and Kako. Takuya shrugged this off; he knew very well Kako could take care of herself, and he didn't doubt Hideki and Rai one bit.

Slowly, Agunimon made his way to the others, collected a few stray sticks along the way. He threw them into the center and lit them, then de-digivolved, joining the miserable little circle and the silence.

"We're doomed," Ritsuo stated flatly.

In response to this, the mood became even glummer, and Naoko, after harshly reprimanding Ritsuo's comment, said aloud, "We can't get down because of this. At least we're alive."

The silence grew heavy with uncomfortable shiftings. "Yeah, but _where_ are we?" someone retorted.

Naoko let out a frustrated growl. "Fujitaka, if that's you, I'm going to..."

"Well _where are we_?" the boy snapped back.

"I don't know!" Naoko shouted. "Do you expect me to know? _I'm as clueless as you_! There! I said it! Are you _happy_?" 

The silence fell again, lasting longer than ever.

After a while, Junpei sighed. "As stated by Edward Grey, 'The lamps are going out all over Europe. We shall not see them lit again ever in our lifetime.'"

Falling silent, Tomoki looked down at his shoes. Kouichi, unable to stand the silence yelled, "Well we saw them lit! This isn't World War I, Junpei! This is a fight for the Digital World! Obviously, the lamps were flickering!"

Takuya allowed a determined smile on his face. "Obviously, they were lit. But the slightest breath blew it out. And we're gonna relight those lamps."

"What a stupid analogy, but sure! Let's do it!" Shinya agreed.

His brother's gaze hardened. Before he could open his mouth, Takuya caught Izumi's gaze and smiled instead. Giving his brother a curt nod, Takuya murmured, "Only if you promise not to interfere."

Shinya gave his brother a hug. "I promise! It'll be like I'm not even here!"

"Great!" Takuya said, reenergized. "So where the hell are we anyway?"

"Drimogemon's holes," Kanaye muttered. "Or do you not remember Hideki pushing us all in here?"

Everyone paused, trying to recall the moment. Before anymore silence could ensue, Kouichi quickly blurted, "Let's just get _out_ and then we'll figure out what to do."

"You _don't_ want to go out there with all those troops ready to kill you. Besides, it's already obvious what we should do, Kimura," Kanaye said quietly. Sighing as he saw all eyes turn towards him, Kanaye muttered, "We dig our way to Lucemon."

-------------------------------------

"Go away!" Kouji shouted, glaring at the persistent Piximon.

The pink digimon just cackled happily. "Come on! Lighten up! It's not good if you're so tense, yup, yup! You'll drop your guard in battle!" he informed the bandana boy.

Kouji retorted, "Says you! Same thing happens if you're relaxed like that!"

"Care to test that?"

"What?" Boy turned to digimon with confused eyes. Piximon's eyes held a certain glint in them, one Kouji wasn't sure about. Cautiously, he shook his head. "We...shouldn't be fighting each other," he said, hoping the excuse would work.

Piximon just went back to cackling. "Smart. Yup, yup!"

_He's getting on my nerves_, Kouji thought, sending a sideways glare at the digimon who was now beside him.

They had made it out of the gray copy of his house, only to wind up on the repetitive streets of his mind. Kouji wasn't even sure if it was his mind or his consciousness, and so simply replied that he didn't know where they were when Piximon asked again and again.

"So where are we again?" asked Piximon almost randomly.

Kouji stopped in his tracks and sent a withering glare towards the digimon. "Do you have a death wish?" he demanded venomously.

That same glint reappeared in Piximon's eyes. Gleefully, he drew back and cried, "Nope! I think you do!" Flying a bit higher, he pointed his staff at Kouji and yelled, "Psy bomb!"

The boy's eyes widened as he saw the attack coming for him. Yet something seemed wrong. Kouji prayed his observations were correct and stayed where he was, not wanting to get hit. The attack flew past his shoulder and landed in front of what seemed like feet.

"WHAT. THE. HELL?" someone screamed.

Kouji's eyes widened, realizing whom the voice belonged to. _NO_, he thought, horrified at the prospect. _Anyone but_...

"Great, so I suppose Duskmon possessed _Piximon_, too?" Kako growled, eyeing the spot where the attack had hit in a disgusted manner. "I'm stuck with murderers."

"I'd hug you but you'd kill me," Kouji croaked, turning around and trying to keep a straight face. "So why are _you_ here?"

Kako's eyes narrowed on him, almost filled with doubt. "Kou...ji...?" she asked.

Scowling, the bandana boy snapped, "No duh? Do I look like Kouichi to you?"

Looking troubled, Kako shook her head and began to explain, "Well...not exactly, but Duskmon was possessing you and-...am I dreaming?" She trailed off and began pinching her arm. "I'm dreaming-OW! So I'm not dreaming...?" Kako looked up at Kouji. "Okay, then what's with Piximon?"

"You can have him!" Kouji yelled, grabbing Piximon's foot and sending the digimon hurtling through the air into Kako, who caught the pink digimon with both hands.

"Hey! Digimon abuser!" Kako and Piximon said in accusing voices, both glaring at Kouji.

"See?" Kouji grinned. _You two even act alike_. He jerked his head down the street. "You know it goes in one big circle, right?" he asked Kako.

"Really?" Kako asked, obviously interested by this discovery. "Where are we, then? This kind of looks like Kouichi's street," observed the girl, taking another look at her surroundings.

"It's...complicated," replied Kouji through gritted teeth. "Just know that there's currently no way out. At least, not that I know of." He muttered the last part mostly to himself.

Kako frowned. "We have to wait?"

"Yeah." Kouji started forward when suddenly he was grabbed back. Scowling, he demanded, "What?"

"You have your D-Tector," Kako said flatly, pointing to Kouji's hand.

"Uhh...yeah..."

Furiously, Kako shouted, "So digivolve!"

"It isn't that simple! I don't know where Lobomon is!" Kouji retorted hotly. "Stop acting like you know everything!"

Before he could turn around again, he felt someone hit his head. Looking up, Kouji discovered a discontent Piximon, but it was Kako who spoke.

"_No, _Kouji. _You_ stop acting like you know everything. People who care about you are _suffering_ seeing Duskmon in your body! Lobomon is inside of you. _We're_ technically inside of you. There's more than this gray imitation of Kouichi's street! You just won't open up!" she shouted. "And if you don't..." Kako looked around the street and broke into a run, yelling after her, "_I'm_ going to _make_ you!"

Kouji watched her, watched as Piximon flew after her. What she said had made complete sense, and yet none. He was his own consciousness, thrown aside by Duskmon. He was _stuck_ in his own thoughts.

Thoughts. He had _thought_ he had solved everything. He had _thought_ he went over _every_ aspect of his plans, _thought_ he had gone over ever detail and planned everything correctly.

He had _thought_ things would go his way.

His thoughts had been wasted on unnecessary things. He had limited them to one area, just one possibility. One...street.

Streets expanded. Streets had twists and turns. No matter what, there was another way out. Kouji paused and stared at his feet. "Maybe it is time...to open up," he mumbled, shutting his eyes with a sigh.

He really hadn't changed much at all. Not yet, anyway.

-------------------------------------

"I'm tired..." Shinya whined. "Do we have any food? Or water? My feet hurt!"

"SHINYA, SHUT UP!" his brother snapped.

"Takuya!" Izumi exclaimed in a hushed voice, quietly reprimanding the boy for several minutes while Shinya went on complaining.

Finally, unable to stand the chatter, Kanaye said in a reasonable, while harsh, voice, "Just _shut up_ and we'll be safe. That is, unless you prefer having your eyes gauged out by flying serpents." After a pause, he said, "Isn't that right, Kimura?"

"Hnnn...?" Kouichi turned to look at Kanaye, eyes half-lidded with sleep.

"I said we have to shut up if we want to be safe," Kanaye repeated.

Nodding, Kouichi mumbled, "Right...sure."

Letting a wry smile show, Kanaye asked with almost mocking kindness, "Have we lost you to sleep?"

"If you've lost me already, everyone else has been long gone," Kouichi replied with a forced smile as he gestured around him.

Kanaye stopped, seeing almost half of the group leaning against the walls of the hole. "Maybe we should stop," he said, clearing his throat, looking almost embarrassed. _I guess not many normal people pull all-nighters_...

Kouichi nodded. "We could all use a little rest. You don't look top shape yourself." He added a grin to the statement.

The other boy scowled. He took a step forward and declared, "I'm going to keep watch ahead," but a hand stopped him.

"I've got it," Kouichi insisted, pushing Kanaye back and walking ahead.

Frowning at the sight of this, Kanaye mentally reminded himself to check up on Kouichi in five minutes. It wouldn't do for the scout to be asleep on the job.

-------------------------------------

Kouji kept his eyes down as they continued through the endless streets that had suddenly opened themselves up. Kako and Piximon were ahead of him, laughing and skipping and flying as they explored the unseen recesses of his mind. In a way, he would have preferred to just _tell_ them, rather than show them.

"So what's this place?" Kako asked, peering through the glass window into an empty shop.

"It's...just another street," Kouji muttered, trying not to look up. Inadvertently, he did, but quickly caught himself.

"And the park over there?"

"It's just a place! Kako, would you get a move on it?" Kouji snapped, finally looking up and glaring at the girl.

She just shook her head. "You're still not opening up. Lobomon could be anywhere, Kouji. Oh, look. _Another_ street is closing up..." Sighing, Kako stopped and looked back over her shoulder. "Kouji, honestly, can't you just stop acting like a lone act and make friends or something?"

"I...have friends," Kouji stuttered, surprised at this attack.

Kako simply shrugged. "Sure."

"I do!" he insisted.

"And who was your very first friend...?" Kako asked smugly.

"Uhh..." Kouji stopped and reddened. _There's no way I can say Takuya's a friend_. _Or Izumi, or Tomoki, or Junpei_..._It's too weird_. _And Kouichi's my brother_. _They don't count!_ Yet, a small voice in the back of his head asked, _And why not?_

With a sigh of defeat, Kouji mumbled incomprehensibly. Kako stared at him in surprise. "What?"

"I don't know!" Kouji shouted. "I don't know! I don't know why I can't share anything about me with anyone, I don't know why I can't count my friends as _friends_, I don't know why I'm so _alone_. I just _am_. Is that so hard to explain?" He stared at her, furious and angry with himself, trying to be angry with her, but it didn't work. He wasn't angry.

He felt relieved.

He continued softly, "I can't open myself up to anyone, I can't without feeling awkward. I don't want to feel awkward. I want to feel safe, and the only way I can do that is if I don't trust anyone."

Kako stared for a while, confusion stark on her face. She frowned, trying to come to a consensus with herself. "Uh...that's great, Kouji," the girl finally said, placing a hand on his shoulder and then wheeling him around. "How about we get going...?" She looked awkward.

Kouji bit his lower lip and stopped in his tracks. Then, out of nowhere, he threw his head back and laughed.

Startled, Piximon flew up to Kako and whispered, "Is he insane?"

"He's quite the madman if you ask me," Kako muttered, taking several steps back and regarding Kouji in amusement. "Quite the madman..."

And throughout the gray darkness, laughter echoed.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

I don't like the idea of cutting it short here, but that's too bad. I've been swamped with finals work (upcoming week is our last day of school: yeah!) because teachers are crazy, math is insane, chem is weird, and lit is more drama than lit, considering my teacher has been teaching drama previous years before this year, which is her first year of teaching a single literature class. Art, we finished our final, French I've got to memorize the oral portion (we finished our writing portion last week), and I do believe either my brother got me sick or it's allergies. Maybe a mix. History's covered for the most part, but I've got to finish summer work and study anyway. The AP book is boooring...Hehe. So the consequence of this plus playing video games (I finally got KH2 and played for 6-ish hours) is less fanfic time. I've also got to transfer my tapes to DVDs. That can wait for the summer. I think. Meep.

So sorry, but I appreciate everyone who reviewed, those people being: **GemmaniGirl**, **x.XWeirdxnxWiseX.x**-

The story seems to be going nowhere...:hits computer:. but I'll be working on it. I _hate_ conclusions.

Review or PM or Flame.


	43. Close Your Eyes

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon, nor do I own the song, 'Close Your Eyes'.

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Close Your Eyes

-------------------------------------

Kouichi sat unmoving, his breathing steady, the hilt of the sword in one hand, the D-Tector in another. His mouth only opened slightly to give way to a gentle exhale, but no words came out. Eyes were shut, and feet were crossed. His eyebrows were furrowed slightly, giving him a look of concentration.

"Busy?" someone asked, forcing Kouichi to open his eyes.

Seeing Kanaye, the first boy sighed. "Not exactly," he answered half-heartedly. Through the darkness, Kouichi could see a thin smile on Kanaye's lips. It struck him how human Kanaye looked like that. Human just didn't seem like something Kanaye could be.

Kanaye cleared his throat. With all the grace he possessed, he took a giant step forward and sat down beside Kouichi. "Something's on your mind. You know, Kimura, if I didn't know you so well, I'd say _you_ were the one who was possessed, not your brother." A pause. "You've changed attitudes so many times, I'm not sure what's wrong with you," Kanaye remarked, face back to being cold and void of emotion.

A heavy sigh was held back in Kouichi's throat. The boy looked away from Kanaye and focused his gaze ahead. In a quiet voice, he admitted, "I guess something's on my mind, but I don't know what. _I can't understand what_. That's probably why I've been so edgy, but..."

"Kako?" Kanaye guessed. _And of course, we can't forget Kouji_, he reminded himself. Kouichi just looked at his shoes. Trying not to snort, Kanaye told the other boy, "I'm sure she's fine."

"The thing is...I'm more worried about her than Kouji," Kouichi said.

Kanaye suppressed a smile at this. "I can understand why. She gets herself in a lot of trouble."

"She gets herself out of trouble real well, too," Kouichi argued, though not as passionately as he might have done so months ago. "It's Kouji...he's in more trouble than she could ever be...or...I don't know." Letting out a frustrated sigh, Kouichi stood up. "I can't sleep."

"You're not trying," Kanaye said pointedly.

"I _can't_. I'm...going...alone," Kouichi said with difficulty, taking a step forward. "I can't stay here...I just can't."

_No one's stopping you_. _Idiot_. _This is what Lucemon wants_, Kanaye thought, biting the tip of his tongue. Kouichi slowly walked off, blanketed by darkness, leaving Kanaye alone. Letting out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding back, Kanaye allowed himself to lie down on the soft earth. "Maybe if they'd listened to me...none of us would be in this stupid mess," he muttered, disgusted.

-------------------------------------

Their surroundings were anything but colorful. He rather enjoyed the situation they were in (it made him feel reliable) however painful it was, but he had always imagined it would happen on a sunny day, surrounded by trees, sunlight...fresh air...and a Rai that was _awake_.

Hideki cringed under Rai's weight. _When will she wake up?_ He lifted his chin up and looked ahead of him, but all he saw was dirt. "Rai...you can get off now," Hideki said, sounding slightly annoyed. He didn't even want to consider the prospect of rolling her off. If she woke up just as he did roll her off, she would be sure to kill him, and right now, more than ever, Hideki wanted to live.

"Rai?" he called out again, wondering how safe his spine was under her weight. "Rai...? _Wake up_."

"Shut up," came the answer in a muffled voice.

"YOU'RE AWAKE?" Hideki screamed, about to jump to his feet until he realized it was Rai he was dealing with.

"I said shut up. And don't move."

_She's been awake this entire time...? No wait...that makes sense. She landed on top of me_. After a few seconds of silence, Hideki asked, "So what's the big deal?"

"It's gone." With a heavy sigh, Rai rose to her feet and looked around. "Drimogemon's holes. Real brilliant, Hideki. We can't go up, we can't go down...we have to go around."

Hideki, now standing, brushed the dirt off himself. "Better here than dead," he retorted.

Angrily, Rai snapped, "We're as good as dead down here!"

He just snorted. "Says you."

"I don't have time for this. We have to find the children-"

"They aren't children, Rai. They're teenagers, perfectly capable of taking care of themselves," Hideki reasoned.

"And what about Kanaye? Can we trust him?" Rai turned around and pointed a finger at Hideki. "Do you honestly think they're capable of realizing whether or not Kanaye's tricking them or not?"

Surprised, Hideki took a step back and held up his hands. "Woah, where are you going? Kanaye...? I really doubt he knows how to pull our leg. He's a jerk, but he's not against us, Rai."

Rai's voice rose considerably as she shouted, "Then how did Duskmon find us? He was standing _right_ where their wristbands were. _They led him to us_."

"They didn't have the digivices! Can you really blame them for wanting to protect themselves? What's safer? Human, or digimon?" Hideki drew a breath and then continued, "Besides, Ichiro only finished those yesterday night. It isn't their faul-"

"It doesn't matter!" Rai whirled around and stormed further into the hole. "You should have just stayed in Japan."

A scowl formed on Hideki's face. Instead of saying anything, he folded his arms across his chest and followed Rai, not saying a word. This continued until at last they reached a fork in their road, and Rai stopped in her tracks.

"Well?" Hideki said. A rude snort escaped him and he walked to the right fork. "Do you really want me to go back, then? I'll go back, Rai. Just say the word, and I'll go back." He turned around, revealing an intense gaze. "What will it be, then?"

Eyes focused on the ground, but could clearly see her fists shaking. Rai cursed aloud bitterly at this betrayal and looked up defiantly. "Shut up."

He watched in confusion and amusement as Rai walked past him into the left tunnel. _What have _I_ gotten myself into? And I thought Kouichi had it bad_. A small snort was suppressed with no effort. Instead, Hideki burst out laughing as he ran after Rai.

-------------------------------------

"So if you were Kouji, Piximon...where would _you_ shove Lobomon in your memories?" Kako asked, frowning at the three-way road ahead of them.

Kouji rolled his eyes. "Let's split up," he said.

Scowling, Kako replied, "If we do that, there's no way Piximon or yours truly would be able to open up any roads. This is _your_ head, dummy." To add to her point, she rapped on Kouji's head with her knuckles, standing up on her tiptoes as she did. "Now," Kako said with haste, noticing the suppressed rage, "think about where you might have stuffed Lobomon."

All the anger escaped him with a deep sigh. Kouji took his time to observe the three streets in front of him. The one on the left, he knew very well. The other two were lost to aging. The bandana boy craned his neck, trying to get a better look. He was still uncertain when he pointed to the left street and said, "This one will lead to the train station. I think the right street is a hospital, and the middle one is...something else. Maybe an old house...or something I wanted to forget." Kouji made sure to mutter the last few words under his breath.

"Alright! To the train station!" Kako declared, taking a decisive step forward. Kouji held a hand out in front of her. Startled, Kako took small, stumbling steps back. "What?" she asked.

Shaking his head, Kouji said, voice barely audible, "I don't think so."

Kako tilted her head to the side. "Well why not?" she asked, turning to watch Piximon as the digimon came flying over to land on her head. Her gaze returned to Kouji, waiting expectantly.

His eyes focused on the ground, slowly rising to stare at the rightmost street. "Just...I just...it's instinct, okay? Listen, sit down, would you? I need to...I need to tell you something." _God, why couldn't it be Izumi I was stuck with...or even Takuya? What's possessing me to tell _her _of all people?_ Kouji, tears being wept in his head, turned away from Kako and shivered.

"Hurry up!"

He jumped and turned around. Hesitantly, Kouji sat down and began, "See, Lobomon isn't in any way tied to the train station. Sure, that's where we entered the Digital World, but there's more to it than just those kind of connections. Thing is, Lobomon isn't just connected to the Digital World in my mind. Back in the Digital World, I..." A pink tinge appeared on his cheeks.

Scowling, Kako snapped, "Spit it out and let's be done."

Scowl was met with scowl. Reddening considerably, Kouji snapped, "Shut up! Back in the Digital World, after I met Kouichi, I began wondering about how our parents were _before_ their divorce. I remember I said something about having two birthdays..."

She looked positively clueless. Piximon fluttered up from Kako's head. "Two birthdays? Why?" he asked curiously.

"Uh...the birthday when we were born and the one where we became digimon," said Kouji, reddening even more.

Kako and Piximon exchanged glances before bursting out into laughter. _Two of a kind_, Kouji thought, lips pressed tightly together to hold back the retort that was on his tongue. Instead, he waited until they were calm again. "Anyway, that brought back a few misplaced baby memories."

"'Baby memories'?" Kako repeated. "Kouji, really...you need to figure out how to-"

"Shut up. That's what they are: _BABY_ memories. You have them too, don't you?" he asked, folding his arms and glaring, all red gone from his face. Kouji snorted when Kako shrugged. "One of them was of a hospital room. Either I died and I'm a ghost now-"

"Yep, I think that's-"

"Shut _up_, goddammit! Don't you know sarcasm when you hear it? No more interruptions." Kouji sent her a warning glance before continuing, "I figured it was the same hospital where Kouichi and I were born. I looked through all the photo albums in our house, because Dad hides all the pictures of Mom. Well, not exactly _hides_, but he just tries to forget about them. I found a few, looked the hospital up..." He stopped.

Piximon settled the ground, staff lying on the ground as he leaned forward in anticipation. Kako waited a few more seconds. "AND...?" she said aloud, startling Kouji out of his trance-like state.

"Oh...I visited the hospital. They demolished it, apparently," Kouji said quickly, shutting his eyes as he felt them glaze over again. "What really got me was how I saw Lobomon there. But it wasn't just _Lobomon_. Thing was, I saw _everyone_. The legendary warriors, Lucemon, Takuya and the others. I think even you and Kanaye's group there...I don't know. I blinked and everything disappeared."

_You blink and of _course_ it'll disappear if it's a hallucination,_ Kako thought, biting the tip of her tongue to stop the smart-aleck remark from coming out. "Okay, anything else?" she asked, noting the long pause.

Kouji nodded. His eyes opened. "Kouichi," he said, and then hesitated.

Kako nodded, waiting for him to continue. "Okay..."

"Shut up. Didn't I tell you not to interrupt?" asked Kouji, scowling.

_Yeah, but just _how_ many times have you told me to shut up? It's not my fault you keep spacing out_. Puffing her cheeks out, Kako placed the pads of her thumb and index finger together, brought the fingers up to her mouth and pulled them across in a zipping motion.

Seeming amused, Kouji shook his head. With a sigh, he murmured, "He looked...sorry. That's besides the point. This isn't about Kouichi right now. We'll only get out if we find Lobomon." He rose to his feet quickly and brushed himself off.

"Hey! You're hiding something!" Kako exclaimed. A finger shot out towards him accusingly.

Kouji brushed the finger aside. "The right most street," he just said, and headed towards the said spot.

The girl's jaw dropped as she watched him walk off without another word. "The nerve," she muttered, storming after him with Piximon floating merrily beside her.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi was finding it harder to breath as he continued. _Maybe I should have taken a nap_, he thought, but quickly pushed it away. Kicking a pebble aside, Kouichi called out, "Duskmon! Where are you? Get over here, now!"

In truth, he couldn't be sure he was right. The swords were something, but it wasn't enough to prove him right. What if Duskmon just planned to lure him away from the others? What if he planned to destroy them, instead?

"No...Duskmon wouldn't do that, would he?" Kouichi whispered to himself.

Lowemon appeared, a shadow behind Kouichi. He regarded the boy, eyes filled with an almost cold emotion that was warm compared to the expression on his face. "Kouichi, do not doubt anything, but instead expect anything: We cannot be sure if Duskmon will abide by our rules."

"I know, but..." Desperately, Kouichi turned around, searching Lowemon for help. "...but why _Kouji?_ Why couldn't he...just...take me again?"

"Because," Lowemon simply said, voice soft. A smile crept onto his features. "Kouichi, you can _fight_ him now. Unfortunately, that's why he didn't possess you. Kouji was undergoing his own problems, easily susceptible to Duskmon's tactics. He had neither the will nor the training to push Duskmon out-"

"Kouji's got a lot of will!" Kouichi shouted angrily. He whirled around, glaring furiously at the digimon.

An irritated sigh escaped Lowemon. "That's not what I mean...I mean to say his will was considerably weakened by his own _internal_ battle."

Kouichi fell silent. Guilty and embarrassed by the outburst, he turned back around. Several things to say popped into his head. Though he tried to say them all, the only word that came out of him was in a quiet voice. "Sorry," Kouichi whispered. "I just don't understand anymore. How am I supposed to protect them all if I don't understand anymore?"

A moment passed where all air escaped Kouichi, leaving him breathless for seconds. When at last he had his breath back, he leaned back against the dirt wall of the cave and sank to the floor, taking deep, measured breaths. "You think...maybe I should try all that meditating junk?" he asked weakly.

_I think you should just breath_. _No more talking_, Lowemon returned, disappearing physically.

A frown tugged on Kouichi's lips. _Alright_. _Are you_...?

_Yes_. _I think you could take the break_. _Go to sleep_. _If Duskmon is abiding by his old code_, _he won't bother us for a while_.

-------------------------------------

"Where's Kouichi?"

Kanaye shot a glare at the boy. "Figure it out yourself."

Angrily, Takuya took a step forward. "What are you saying...?" he growled. A few more steps and Takuya had advanced right in front of Kanaye.

Naoko started towards the two to prevent any bloodshed, but Fujitaka held her back. Instead, Izumi called out in a warning tone, "Takuya..."

"To the right!" Shinya shouted with a cackle.

Izumi's piercing glare turned to the younger Kanbara. "Shinya." Immediately, the boy fell silent.

Calmly, Kanaye replied, "He's Kouichi, goggle brain. What's Kouichi's flaw?"

The goggle boy was taken aback. He scratched the back of his head cluelessly, then shrugged. "I'm supposed to know...?" he asked.

_IDIOT_, Kanaye thought. The word was repeated several more times in his head. Through gritted teeth, he said, "Kouichi doesn't like getting others involved in what he thinks is _his_ business." _Some friend_, _not knowing his flaw_. _Now, to repay an overdue debt_. He spun around on his heel. "Ritsuo. Fujitaka. Naoko." The three showed no sign of following, but merely hesitation.

"Kanaye! We're a _team!_" Takuya shouted, swinging a hand out.

Kanaye stopped. "No one's coming...?" he asked, turning his head to the side. "You're all a lot of idiots." An annoyed look appeared on his face as he turned back around to face them all. "Listen, goggle brain, tell me your priorities. Do you plan to get Kouichi first or go onto Lucemon?" he demanded.

A short moment passed where the look of conflict appeared on Takuya's face. "Straight to Lucemon! Kouichi can take care of himself, as much as I hate to say it," he replied solemnly.

"Then our paths are different. Tell me something else, goggle brain."

"What?"

A small smile appeared on Kanaye's face. "Do you ever skip important conversations or places in a video game?"

Taken aback by the question, Takuya fell silent, and his gaze fell to his feet. In his place, Shinya piped up, "Of course he does! Lots of times!"

"Do you ever _not_ get characters?"

"Yeah!" Shinya answered again.

Takuya looked up, meeting Kanaye's eyes. "I see." Turning around, he grinned. "Change of plans! Let's go get Kouichi back!"

_Idiots_, Kanaye thought, turning around to hide his smile. "Then hurry up. He's had a great head start."

-------------------------------------

"Oh!" Kako gasped, looking around. "I know this place, I think..."

Kouji turned his head over his shoulder. "Yeah?"

Making a face, she ran to catch up to him. A furious nod was the answer. In a quiet voice, she told Kouji, "I got lost here."

A startled expression appeared on his face. Kouji stared at her in shock, and his foot accidentally scraped against a small rock, nearly causing him to trip. At the sudden sound, Kako jumped and clutched on tightly to Kouji's arm-probably the reason he didn't fall.

"L-let go," Kouji ordered, brushing her away. "When was that? When you were three?"

"S-six," Kako replied with a squeak.

_Three, six, nineteen...no matter what, I bet she'll never change_. Kouji scanned the street for any sign of the hospital. "I think...it's...just up ahead," he finally said, coming across a familiar looking antique shop.

"Gaaah! This is the place!" Kako squealed, now practically hugging Kouji.

Piximon, alerted by the noise, flew higher up into the air as Kouji came staggering by. "Let me go!" growled the bandana boy, red-faced and furious. "Kako! You aren't six anymore!"

Sniffling, Kako let his arm go and stared at Kouji with wide eyes. "But...I just realized...this shop..." She motioned to the antique shop. "Ogata ran it."

"You're joking."

"No. That's why he lied and said he was forty-something. See, it was a family business. He worked here when he was like...seventeen or eighteen or something like that. I _know_. My mom came here...every week...? Something like that..." Kako shivered and lowered her gaze to the ground. "She'd talk to him, and he'd always be scowling." She looked up and found Kouji in front of the store. "What are you doing...?" Kako asked, suddenly worried.

"I _saw_ something," Kouji returned rudely. "Hurry up!" Piximon was waving urgently, too.

_Not good...?_ Nervous, Kako ran after the two.

A figure emerged from the shadows as they entered the deserted shop. Eyes stared fixedly at them, unblinking. "Promises are meant to be kept," the figure whispered before slowly slinking back into the darkness.

-------------------------------------

He sat on the boulder, arms folded. In one hand, the white sword was gripped. The other hand was clenching and unclenching every few minutes. At last, he looked up, smiling smugly to himself. "Finally," he muttered, hopping off the rock and landing gracefully onto his feet just as the person he had been waiting for advanced closer.

"Duskmon," came the growl.

The smugness didn't disappear. "Where's Kouichi?"

A sigh of defeat escaped the digimon, and Lowemon de-digivolved, revealing an exhausted Kouichi. "Duskmon...let me fight you..." he mumbled, drawing out the sword. He leaned on it heavily, causing the tip of the blade to sink into the dirt. "...and if I win," the boy continued, "get out of Kouji, please."

But Kouji just laughed. "Kouichi, Kouichi...keep in mind who you are talking to. When have I been known to make such silly deals?" he laughed, pointing the sword at Kouichi.

In a quiet voice, Kouichi murmured something.

Kouji scowled. "What?" he asked, somewhat rudely.

"You won't accept because you're afraid I'll win," Kouichi repeated slightly louder.

A brief smile lit Kouji's face before twisting into a sneer. "I won't accept because it would be pointless. I'm already on my guard. You're too soft, Kouichi. Too kind..." Without warning, Kouji was in front of him, sword poised above his head. "You honestly hope to beat Lucemon like this?"

Their blades clashed, and Kouichi pushed his brother's body back. Trying to get a hold of his breath, he demanded, "What do you want with Kouji? Just leave him alone."

"But you see, Kouichi...that's _precisely_ why I'm using Kouji. Put up your guard!" This last part was a furious command, as Kouichi had dropped his sword to one side, and thrown the D-Tector to the other side.

"Kouichi!" Lowemon appeared behind the boy. "What are you doing?"

Shaking his head, the boy just murmured, "I can't fight. I _won't_ fight. You win. Are you happy?" He gazed up defiantly, meeting a pair of identical eyes. "I...I know the Digital World will disappear. I don't want it to. I'm trying to think, Duskmon, but there's too much. You, Kouji, Kako, Marise, everyone else...I can't multitask in my head. I'm not that bright. I _need_ people, but I don't want to hurt them. Remember that poem...?"

"Refresh my memory," Kouji growled.

"So then the townsfolk smiled,  
Returned to their work, leaving the child.  
In the end, although he cried, cold, alone,  
Darkness took him and showed him warmth," Kouichi recited, keeping a hold of his brother's gaze. "Sound familiar? After all, Duskmon, wouldn't that child be you?"

Silence fell between them, and the grip loosened around the sword in Kouji's hand, much to the older twin's relief. "I..." began Kouji, but a yell cut him off.

"Kouichi! Out of the way!" someone shouted. "Pyro darts!"

"Takuya...no!" Kouichi returned, turning around and wincing as the blasts of heat flew past him. He brought his arms up before his eyes to shield them from the flying gusts of dust.

The attacks just kept coming.

"Thunder fist!"

"Tempest twist!"

"Crystal freeze!"

"Dark Vapor."

"Leaf Cyclone."

"IDIOTS," came an annoyed voice. "I told you to follow him _quietly_, not _attack_ when you see the enemy. Why won't anyone just _listen_ to me?"

_Kanaye_, Kouichi thought, somewhat relieved. Dropping his arms to his side, he turned around and nodded at Kouji. "You...?" he asked softly. His hope was building, only fueled by the footsteps of his friends behind him.

But Kouji's hand tightened around the sword again. "I _was_ that child, but I won't be, ever again!" A maniacal look appeared on his face. "Get your sword, Kouichi...! It's time to fight!"

Kouichi just swallowed. He looked over his shoulder, a helpless look on his face. Takuya was the only one who did anything, letting out a nervous laugh.

"Oops?" the goggle boy just said.

"Oops," Kouichi agreed, turning back around to collect his D-Tector and sword. "Oops."

-------------------------------------

"Kouji, please," Kako begged him, "just find Lobomon! We can come back again!" She had been pleading with him ever since he entered the shop she dreaded so much.

"I don't think so. Piximon, can you check the shelves? No, _those_ shelves, over there," Kouji said to the digimon, pointing to the opposite side of the room.

The digimon did as he was told, fluttering over to the shelves and sitting on one of the platforms. "What are we looking for?" he asked curiously.

"Papers...books...something...anything that could tell us about Lucemon or his weaknesses. Anything about Chaos, too," Kouji murmured, preoccupied with searching himself.

Letting out a whimper, Kako shifted from one foot to another. "_Please_, Kouji!"

Kouji shut the book in his hand and placed it back in its respective spot. Scowling, he snapped, "Just a while longer!" He didn't bother to look up.

"No! I'm going outside _NOW!_" the girl shouted, stomping her foot down.

Shocked, Kouji turned to look at her, another book in his hand. A vase on the desk tilted from the waves of the stomp and rolled off and crashed to the floor. The entire room fell silent, with all eyes on the vase.

A curious look was plastered onto his face. Kouji walked over to where the vase had fallen and knelt down. "Those drawings," Kouji said softly, picking up a broken shard of the vase. "Lucemon...the symbols for the ten legendary spirits..." He looked up at Kako. "Does it have any more?"

She just let out another whimper. "Please," the girl tried again.

"Hey, up here!" Piximon called out.

Kouji was up on his feet in seconds and ran over to the pink digimon. "What is it?" he called out, and the two began to examine a book with the symbols of the ten legendary warriors arranged in a circle, with a picture of Lucemon in the middle. Around this circle, however, was a mass of dark purples, blacks, and grays.

_I hate gray_, Kouji thought, opening the book and staring at it blankly. He flipped through a few more pages, scowled, and then threw the book onto the floor. "Nothing," he spat, seeming disgusted. Then, he proceeded to head to the door. "Come on."

Hesitantly, Kako picked up the book at her feet. Letting out a shaky breath, she murmured, "Kouji...get back here..."

"What? The book is empty," Kouji declared, turning his head to see her.

"Not this page."

The bandana boy made a mad dash towards her, practically ripping the book out of her hands. Kako held on, slightly annoyed by the action. Piximon flew over and landed on Kako's head.

"'_Chaos_, _by which I shall control all the gates_, _come to me now_, _come with me forever_. _Heed not the boundaries of light_, _nor the boundaries of darkness_. _Become one with both_, _for that is what you are_.' How lame..." Kouji muttered, shoving the book towards Kako.

"Don't tell me you don't understand..."

"I don't understand."

"IDIOT!" Kako brought the book down on Kouji's head. When he let out a yelp and turned around, the girl explained, "Chaos is made of both light and darkness, right?" He nodded, and she continued, "Because of this, Chaos has no boundaries. It can surpass both darkness and light. Now, if you produce your _own_ Chaos of equal amount..."

Kouji's eyes widened in surprise. "You don't mean..."

Kako smiled and nodded. As quickly as it came, the smile faded. "Unfortunately, Duskmon's in the equation," she muttered, frowning.

"I can take care of that."

Startled, the three looked up. Kako and Piximon hid behind Kouji, and the boy just blinked. "Duskmon...?" he murmured in surprise.

"No way! He's all...not gloomy!" Kako hissed.

The figure before them just frowned. "Promises are meant to be kept," he said, and a troubled look passed over his face.

Kako shot him a puzzled look and stepped out from behind Kouji. "Oh...?"

"I do not know."

"What?"

"Who I am. You were going to ask me, weren't you?" The figure tilted his head to the side. In looks, he was like Duskmon, save for the coloring. Instead of the gloomy black, red, and whatnot, he was wearing a white armor, with gold plates where Duskmon's eyes would have been. "I made a promise to someone," the digimon explained. "I don't know who..."

Kako and Kouji exchanged glances. Quickly, they turned their backs to the digimon and began a conversation in hushed tones.

"He's like an Anti-Duskmon," Kako whispered.

Kouji nodded. "Makes sense. Does that mean we can cancel Duskmon from the equation?" he inquired.

For a while, Kako thought hard. Shrugged, she said, "Maybe. But Kouji, if Anti-Duskmon is here..."

They both fell silent. Then, in unison, they cried, "HOLY LUCEMON!"

"Lucemon isn't holy," the Anti-Duskmon told them.

"No, no, no!" Kouji said quickly. "It's just...if you're like the _Anti_-Duskmon, then the _Duskmon_-Duskmon will be...the one possessing me...and...if you guys are separate...have you _always_ been separate?" Panic was running through him. What Kouji was mostly worried about was what the Duskmon-Duskmon, as he had named the possessing digimon, was doing with his body.

Frowning, the Anti-Duskmon admitted, "I'm not sure..."

Kako pushed Kouji forward. "Hurry, hurry!"

"Sorry, Anti-Duskmon, we need to take you with us!" Kouji blurted, dragging the digimon along by the hand as he began to break into a run. He didn't need to look behind him to tell that Kako and Piximon weren't too far behind.

-------------------------------------

Hideki, tired of the ongoing silence, decided it was time to let loose the chain of questions in his head. "By the way," he asked Rai casually, "any idea where we're going?"

"Yes," she snapped, and said nothing more.

He paused, waiting a while before he asked the next question. It was all part of the game, and he was going to play by the rules. "Where _are_ we going?" he asked, now sounding curious.

"To find the children."

_Screw rules_, Hideki thought, now smirking. "And they are _where_?"

"Somewhere."

"That's _where_, exactly? I'm sorry, I lost my map."

"Lost your brain with it, I see."

"Rai, you're lost, aren't you?" Hideki finally concluded, more serious than he had been in the past few minutes.

A pause. They arrived at a fork again. "N-no." The hesitation answered his question.

Hideki cleared his throat and pointed to the floor. "We've been in circles. Footprints, and they're our size. Let's go right this time."

"No," Rai said.

"We've already been to the left fork! Rai, let's go _right_."

Still, the answer was the same, old, firm, "No."

He couldn't take it anymore. Whether he loved her or not, he didn't want to end up going in endless circles. "You know what...?" Hideki said slowly, voice rising in volume, "Maybe I _shouldn't_ have come in my dad's place." He sent a piercing glare in her direction. "I've had a lousy time, picking girls. Every single person I went out with, Kako hated. You know, the _only_ one she liked was you. _You know that_. And I actually _liked_ you, Rai. Look, I completely understand how you have a great crap of a commitment to your job, so _fine_. I won't care that you're dumping me because I'm supposed to die or crap like that, but I sure as hell won't let you ruin their lives! _We're going right, whether you like it or not_." Roughly, Hideki grabbed a hold of her arm and yanked her through the tunnel.

Rai was too surprised to do anything about it.

-------------------------------------

"Is _this_ the place?" Kako asked, staring at the flat land before her in surprise.

Kouji nodded and pointed to the pile of rubble in front of them. "There," he murmured, stepping forward and gazing at the pile. "I just...don't know what to do."

Frowning, the girl rubbed the back of her neck thoughtfully. Piximon struck a thinking pose in the air, and Anti-Duskmon stared at the rubble with his head tilted to the side curiously.

"Someone once told me," the digimon began, "that you must call up all of yourself in times where you are stuck and need help. You must bring yourself to a firm decision, put all your efforts to make this choice come true. Only you can help yourself."

The frown deepened on Kako's face. "Hey, who knew Duskmon was such a wise guy?" she muttered, amused.

Anti-Duskmon just shook his head. "It was not my other half, but someone else. A human, I believe," he said.

"Oh, in that case...wow, I never knew humans could be so smart!" the girl laughed.

"It's only you," Kouji muttered under his breath. Ignoring her indignant shout, he returned all attention to the pile of rubble. "Then...I want the hospital back...the way it was _before_ it was torn down," he whispered softly, staring hard at the pile of rocks.

Kako and Piximon took a great gasp of air and held it, watching and waiting. Anti-Duskmon remained as silent as Kouichi, concentrating on the pile of rocks himself.

Seconds passed. Nothing happened.

Kouji released a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. "What now...?" he moaned, sinking to his knees.

"Get up. Do not lose hope so easily." A pause from Anti-Duskmon. "That human...also said that. Or did he...?"

Trying to keep the hopeful mood, Kako added, "He's right, Kouji. You never saw the hospital while it was constructed, right? All you remember was the room...? Try imagining the room, instead!"

"The room...?" Kouji whispered softly. "I don't remember it all that much." His eyes slipped shut and he fell onto his palms. "It had peach walls, I think. Or maybe it was just the light reflecting off the walls. I remember a table. I...remember Kouichi...just barely."

"Kou...ichi?" echoed Anti-Duskmon. "Who is he?"

"Kouji's twin," Kako murmured in a hushed voice. _Kouichi_..._I wonder how he's doing_. "Watch," she whispered, "and see how I can get him motivated." Aloud, she said, "Kouji, come on! Pull yourself together! What if you're just overlooking something?" A grumble escaped her lips when Kouji stayed where he was, unmoving. "You know, just kick aside the rubble," she commented, walking over and pushing aside a large block of cement the size of her hand, too afraid to try to kick it. "And I'm sure an egg will appear! Just like that one!" she declared, pointing to the pile.

"What egg...?" Kouji looked up, startled, then crawled over and pushed aside more blocks of cement. "Where?" he demanded, finding nothing.

Kako just shrugged. "It's called motivation, buddy."

"IT'S CALLED FALSE HOPE!" the boy retorted angrily. Rising to his feet, Kouji let out a curse and kicked something nearby. "I'm never listening to you again."

"So..." Kako paused and pressed her lips together. Hesitantly, she asked, "You won't believe me when I tell you that you just kicked Lobomon's egg?"

"The hell would I?" asked Kouji, obviously exasperated.

Again, Kako hesitated. "Believe me or kick the egg?" she asked slowly.

"Both!"

"Because...it's true and you did about over twenty seconds ago." Kako pointed to the egg that was rolling down the road. "Good job, now go get it!"

"I KICKED THE EGG?" Kouji screamed, dashing madly towards the egg.

Beaming, Kako turned to the two digimon. Laughing with her eyes shut, she told them aloud, "See? I told you he'd find it with a little motivation!" Kako opened her eyes, ready to say more, but discovered both digimon were already after Kouji. Grumbling, she thought, _I miss the old Piximon_.

-------------------------------------

Kouichi's eyes widened as he saw the blade swing towards him. It was expertly aimed, and was sure to have sent him flying back. And yet, all it did was dully slam against the flat of his own blade.

Well, technically both swords were his, but...

A yelp flew out past his lips at the feel of something against his leg. Kouichi could clearly hear the cloth being torn open by his shin, could clearly feel the blood ooze out and trickle slowly down. He ignored this, however, instead concentrating on watching his brother. Duskmon seemed to be holding back within, and for what reason, Kouichi was unsure of. It had been going on long enough, though. His stamina wasn't developed for such short, intense fights.

Not that it was developed much at all.

"What are you doing, Duskmon?" Kouichi finally snapped, swinging his blade in front of him. He had no desire to fight back; he was on permanent defense. "You could have beaten me minutes ago." The fight was wearing him down...and Kouji didn't look in any better shape. He was tired. He wanted it to end.

"Shut up!" Furiously, Kouji lashed the blade forward recklessly, and it slipped out of his hand to fly harmlessly in front of Shinya.

The younger Kanbara quickly cackled as he picked it up. "Cool!" exclaimed Shinya, examining the blade with awe.

Takuya just grumbled. To Kanaye, he said, "Are they done yet? I really want to just kick his-"

"No, no, and _no_," Kanaye snapped. "Now watch."

Kouichi stood there, watching his brother, watching Duskmon. It was almost hard to believe they were different people. "Duskmon, what are you doing?" Kouichi asked in a quiet voice, walking up to his twin, who had fallen onto his knees in defeat. "I don't see what you want."

But Kouji, instead of answering, looked up and murmured, "You learned well..." A smile appeared on his face with great difficulty. "Marise taught you well..."

After a few seconds, Kouichi corrected, "Not just Marise. Everyone. Including you, Duskmon. Now please, Duskmon..." He stopped here, unsure of what to ask for. If Duskmon left Kouji, he would be gone forever. If he stayed, there would probably be no chance of seeing Kouji again. No matter what, it would be a lose/lose situation to him.

He was being _selfish_ again.

He had been helpless for the past few hours, and he was just as helpless as before. Kouichi turned around, searching the faces of his friends for any sign of help. They all smiled encouragingly at him. He could even find a slight smile on Kanaye's face, however small it was. Kanaye nodded, as if telling him it was all right to do what he was about to do.

He wasn't sure what he wanted to do.

Swallowing, Kouichi walked over to his brother's body and kneeled down. "Duskmon...will you please..." he began again.

A soft light illuminated the cave, practically blinding them all. Kouichi tried to resituate his eyes to the light as quick as possible, and succeeded just in time to see Kouji's body float into the air and separate. At least, he could only _explain_ it as separating. There were two Kouji's, and one was slowly changing shape. Both shone brightly for a few seconds, and all returned to normal.

Kouichi swallowed. "Kouji...?" he called out softly, holding out a hand and trying to feel his way through the darkness. Seconds passed, and his eyes adjusted to the dark of the room. On the floor lay Kouji, groaning, with something white in his hand. On his back sat Kako, staring around in confusion, and beside her floated a familiar pink digimon. "K-Kako...?" the boy choked in surprise.

"Kouichi? Huh! Hey, where are you? I've got a few bones to pick with you...maybe hairs if you're lucky. And where's Duskmon? Or...Anti-Duskmon, rather?" she called out.

"KAKO GET OFF OF ME!"

The girl snorted and looked around. "What?" she asked, staring below and seeing Kouji's jacket. "OH..." Quickly, Kako scrambled to her feet and offered a hand to Kouji. "Sorry."

Kouji accepted the hand and, with Kako's help, stood up on both feet, feeling slightly dizzy. "Uh...where's Anti-Duskmon?" he murmured. The bandana boy didn't notice the egg that was rolling around beside his feet.

"Anti...Anti-Duskmon?" Kouichi echoed. Feeling incredibly uninformed, he walked up to his brother. "What happened...?"

"Right...uh...damn, I can't see anything!" Kouji muttered, pointing his finger out in front of him. "Kako, where is he?"

"Which 'he' are you talking about?" Kako snapped with a scowl.

Kouichi pushed his twin's finger aside as it came to point at him. A restless feeling bubbled up from the pit of his stomach. Before any thought came into his head, Kouichi screamed, "Someone _please_ tell me what's going on!"

The entire cave fell silent, save for the sound of someone scratching their shoe on the ground. Kouichi saw Piximon float onto Kako's head.

"Uh...let's start with Piximon! Kouichi, meet Piximon the annoying," Kako said, laughing nervously as she pointed up at the digimon on her head. Not seeing any emotion flicker on Kouichi's face, she stopped laughing and her gaze fell to the ground.

The twins exchanged calm looks, eyes locked. "You..." Kouji began, hands clenching into fists.

Kouichi struck first, punching his brother's jaw. "IDIOT!" he snapped, glaring murderously at the bandana boy. "You have a lot of explaining! What if I had to _kill_ you? What would I say to Mom, then? 'Sorry, Mom, I couldn't do anything _but_ kill Kouji. Oh, yeah, and the world is going to end in a few hours because Lucemon took over. Feel free to kill me whenever!' What happened to that promise you made?" The older twin hovered over his fallen brother, still glaring.

"Promise..." Kouji started, looking up at Kako. "Hey...Anti-Duskmon said...he said something about promises, right?"

Nodding, Kako recited, "'Promises are made to be kept.' That's pretty true, I guess..." She shrugged. "But probably only 0.1 of the promises made are kept in the world."

"Start explaining, or I'll tell Mom you died after personally killing you myself!" Kouichi snapped. "Who _is_ Anti-Duskmon?"

"Kouichi, you know _everyone_ is staring at you, right?"

"I know that! They can feel free to help me! Except..." Kouichi turned around to meet the blank stares of his friends. "Shinya has the sword, so we should probably take care of that first..."

"Done!" Takuya shouted, waving the sword in the air side to side. Due to this, a circle of at least two yards in radius was made around him.

"Put the sword down!" Izumi barked, pushing Shinya in front of her.

The younger of the Kanbaras was grinning. Seeing this, Takuya sent a glare at Izumi and placed the sword on the ground before running over to Kouji. "Boy, you missed a great fight," the goggle boy remarked, just grinning as Kouji grumbled and stood up. "Never knew you could put up a great fight."

"Yeah, yeah, but where's Anti-Duskmon? Or Duskmon?" Kouji muttered, rubbing his jaw and looking around the dirt cave. "Where's...wait..._is that Kanaye?_" Kouji asked, half-growling.

"Just shut up and tell me what happened!" Kouichi returned, grabbing his brother by the lapels of his jacket.

Kouji followed, only grabbing Kouichi by the collar of his shirt. "No, _you_ just shut up and tell me what happened!"

"_Both_ of you shut up and tell us what happened," Kanaye snapped. The twins turned their heads in surprise before Kako pushed them apart. Eyes shut, Kanaye muttered, "I believe Kouji should start, as events happened to him first."

Still glaring at Kanaye, Kouji crossed his arms and let out a snort. "Yeah, I'm so sure. I bet you're just ready to turn tail and run while we fight Lucemon."

"Kouji, just _tell_ them," Kako hissed, kicking the bandana boy's shin.

Through gritted teeth, Kouji began, "I got stuck in my own head. Some trick Duskmon used to take over my body and keep me in. So I tried looking for a way out, found my D-Tector, Piximon, Kako, and Anti-Duskmon, who isn't here. Your story?" His eyes were mainly focused on Kanaye.

Naoko answered instead. "Big mumble of nothing, if you get my meaning. We split up, secured the three points of the Area, which we're in, and headed to the center. Then we met up with you-or...Duskmon, rather, and Hideki shoved us in one of the Drimogemon holes."

"And I got stuck talking to Duskmon, who then decided to play a very nice joke on me and sent me into Kouji's horrible head. _How_ many lectures did we go through? Not only that, but I got told to shut up about eighty times," Kako grumbled.

"True...what about you, Kouichi?"

"I...am...beat. Dead tired. Over five minutes of serious fighting with Duskmon, and I still don't understand what's going on. Who's Anti-Duskmon, and where's Duskmon? He wouldn't just disappear..." Kouichi looked around the cave with a sigh. "I wanted to talk to him..."

"Um...about that, Kouichi," Kako said quickly.

He turned to her and immediately frowned, seeing the downcast look on her face. "Yeah...?"

Nervously, Kako mumbled, "I think Anti-Duskmon...well...oh, let me start from the beginning." She drew a breath and said in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear, "You see...we found this book...and I'm not sure how it could be there if Kouji never saw it, but it was there. It was a pretty smart book, in the sense that it had a lot of stuff about Chaos and...well, we...or I...came to the conclusion that..." She sent a look at Kouji, unable to continue.

"Chaos is made out of both darkness and light. If you can create Chaos greater than that..." Kouji trailed off and took his D-Tector out of his pocket. "We can get rid of Chaos, and maybe even Lucemon." He looked up, watched as his brother walked to the fallen sword and picked it up. "Two swords...?" asked Kouji, raising an eyebrow.

Kouichi nodded. One sword was in each hand. "Light," Kouichi murmured, tossing the white sword to his brother. "And dark. Duskmon was right. It fits," he whispered softly.

Kouji caught the sword and brought it to his side with ease. "Duskmon..." he muttered, staring at the screen of his D-Tector.

Quickly storing his sword back in his D-Tector, Kouichi asked Kanaye, "Where to now?"

"First take care of Duskmon," replied Kanaye, returning Kouichi's blank look with an equally blank stare of his own.

Shocked gasps cut the silence. "What?" Kouichi asked dumbly.

"Take care of Duskmon. Everyone else can come with me. We'll wait," Kanaye said, just shrugging as he turned around and walked off.

The others followed, too. Naoko and Fujitaka had to drag Ritsuo, who had teamed up with Junpei to spy on Kouichi. In the meantime, Kouji was dragging Takuya who was dragging Shinya, who was trying to snatch Kouichi's D-Tector and withdraw the sword. The others went too, however reluctantly. In the end, Kako was the only one still in the room, staring thoughtfully at Kouichi.

"You know," the girl began, "if there's one thing to remember, it's..." Kako hesitated momentarily, before a small smile broke out on her face. "Promises...really are made to be kept."

Kouichi opened his mouth to say something, but she was already running to find Kanaye and the others. Troubled, Kouichi looked around the empty dirt room. "Duskmon...?" he murmured aloud. His heart had never felt heavier, and if it had, he couldn't be sure when. A pained expression crossed Kouichi's face and his eyes fell to the ground. "He's not gone...is he?"

"Hardly. He's right in front of you."

Startled, Kouichi looked up, finding Duskmon right in front of him. Behind the digimon, there was another...same height, same build, but different colors. "That's...Anti-Duskmon?" he guessed, forcing a smile.

Duskmon just shrugged. "My shadow."

"Shadow?" Puzzled, Kouichi lifted a finger, pointing from one digimon to the other. "But...you're...and he's...how...?"

"It's just that way. What's the shadow of darkness, Kouichi? What's the shadow of light?" Duskmon smirked, seeing an understanding look on Kouichi's face. "Exactly." A pause. "You see, I'm not meant to be."

Kouichi kept silent. _Of course_. _Just...the corrupt form of Lowemon_, he thought to himself, lowering his eyes to the ground.

"Look up and face it, Kouichi."

"And why _should_ I?" the boy demanded angrily, meeting the digimon's eyes. "I don't care if you aren't meant to be, I don't care if you shouldn't exist! Thing is, you _do_ right now, and that's what matters! Why can't...why...why do we have to go so far as to destroy a world for our safety? I'd...rather be destroyed."

"Would you rather be tormented with the knowledge that countless other worlds are suffering because you simply refuse to destroy one world? Are you going to destroy one or all? Sometimes, Kouichi, there is no choice. Sometimes, we'll be forced onto a new turf. Sometimes, we'll be stuck in the dark," Duskmon hissed, red eyes narrowing on the boy. "Sometimes, all we can do is hope."

"I'm sick of hope."

'_Doushite_ _matteru_ _no_?  
_Oreta_ _hane_ _no_ _you_ _ni_  
_Zutto_ _hiza_ _wo_ _kakaete_  
_Tsurai_ _omoi_ _nara_ _naze_..._naze_...'

"Isn't it a common human belief that when one close to you dies...or leaves...they're always in your heart?" Duskmon asked, seeming pained to mention such emotion. Kouichi just looked up, surprised Duskmon would ever mention such.

'_Toki_ _wa_ _modora_ _nai_  
_Hontou_ _wa_ _wakatteru_  
_Urei_ _no_ _KYANDORU_ _wa_  
_Mou_ _kiete_ _shimatta_ _no_  
_Itami_ _dake_ _wo_ _mitsume_ _naide_'

"But...but that isn't true," Kouichi murmured. "Sometimes...sometimes it's more. I don't...after...I don't want to regret _anything_ anymore! Why are you doing this?" he cried out, glaring at the digimon, wishing he was home, wishing he had never been to the Digital World, wishing he had just had a normal family.

A snort escaped Duskmon. This time, Anti-Duskmon spoke up softly, and it was hard to hear, as his back was turned to Kouichi. "Even in darkness, you are able to see, because there is a light. You cannot let anger and pain blind you, or you will never see that light. There is always a way out," he said.

'_Close_ _your_ _eyes_ _nemutte_  
_Konya_ _wa_ _soba_ _ni_ _iru_  
_Kitto_ _yume_ _no_ _naka_ _ni_ _sagashite_ _ita_  
_Hikari_ _ga_ _aru_..._for_ _you_'

"You realize time will just go on. You _will_ have to let go. It's best if you do so now," the digimon murmured, turning around.

"Memories are more than just memories. You live through them, Duskmon!"

"And with age comes corruption of those memories. Live for the future. Correct it for the past. Promise me that, and I'll be at peace." Duskmon turned to his shadow and nodded.

'_Towa_ _ni_ _surechigau_  
_Omoide_ _to_ _ikite_ _yuku_ _no_?  
_Sou_ _kiri_ _no_ _you_ _na_ _hibi_ _wo_ _furikaeru_ _yori_  
_Ima_ _wa_ _tsugi_ _no_ _DOA_ _wo_ _ake_ _you_'

Kouichi just watched as the two disappeared, fading forever from reality. The puzzle he had thought he put together so long ago in his head was ruined. He was missing pieces, pieces lost in the past. Over half the pieces were ruined somehow...cut up, burned, shredded, covered with false lies. It was too large for him to handle alone. He didn't want to handle it alone.

It was a burden he didn't want. He had friends, though, didn't he? But to burden them...he couldn't do that. Kouichi swallowed, and slowly turned to make his way to where everyone else was waiting. He couldn't cry now, he couldn't be weak. He had to be strong. He had promised to keep everyone safe. What had Kako told him? "Promises are meant to be kept," Kouichi whispered to himself. _Meant to be kept_...

He regarded everyone with dull eyes, unsure of what to say, unsure of what to do. Duskmon had told him to live for the future. Kouichi wanted the past.

_Let go_...? Kouichi felt himself take a seat on the floor, eyes void of any emotion. _Start anew_...

"Is he...okay?" asked Shinya suddenly, breaking the awkward silence.

Kouji just nodded. "He'll be fine. Believe me," the younger twin declared in a tone that ended all argument.

His eyes slipped shut. His head rested against the dirt wall. He was breathing, he was alive.

Duskmon wasn't meant to exist. Yet he _did_ exist, he _had_ existed, and he _still_ existed in Kouichi's memories. Memories that, as Duskmon had said, would grow corrupt. Memories that would be lost to time.

"Kouichi..." Kako sat down beside the boy, staring at him calmly. "He's gone for good...?" she whispered.

It wouldn't end. _Why won't it end?_ Kouichi winced.

'_Close_ _your_ _eyes_ _itsudemo_  
_Watashi_ _ga_ _soba_ _ni_ _iru_  
_Nagai_ _nagai_ _yoru_ _mo_ _itsuka_ _akeru_  
_Dakara_  
_Say_ _goodbye_ _to_ _yesterday_  
_Hajimari_ _wo_ _mitsuke_ _you_  
_Kitto_ _yume_ _no_ _hate_ _ni_ _asa_ _wo_ _tsugeru_  
_Hikari_ _ga_ _aru_'

And yet...his friends were with him. Duskmon was gone, but Duskmon had been correct. He _had_ to live...for the _future_. And if not the future, for his friends.

"It...wouldn't be fair, huh?" Kouichi murmured aloud, relief flooding through him at the confused sounds from everyone around him.

They were with him.

'_Subete_ _wo_ _terasu_ _ooki_ _na_ _ai_  
_Moshi_ _mie_ _nai_ _nara_  
_Kitto_ _ima_ _wa_  
_Kizuite_ _nai_ _dake_'

He couldn't let them down.

His eyes opened, and a soft smile formed on his lips. "Thank you, everyone," Kouichi murmured, suddenly feeling tired and awake at the same time. He was finally understanding.

'_Close_ _your_ _eyes_ _itsudemo_  
_Suteki_ _na_ _yume_ _wo_ _mite_  
_Nagai_ _nagai_ _yoru_ _wa_ _yagate_ _akeru_  
_Dakara_  
_Say_ _goodbye_ _to_ _yesterday_  
_Hajimari_ _wo_ _mitsuke_ _you_  
_Kitto_ _mezameru_ _toki_  
_Mune_ _no_ _naka_ _ni_ _michiru_ _hikari_..._for you_'

He would start again.

Kouichi rose to his feet. "Well, where to now?"

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Sorry for attempted chapter. But YES for Summer! I'll start working on the story more often, hopefully. But I miss some of my teachers…

You can google up 'Close Your Eyes' lyrics or just google up _Cherryblossom Garden_, go to Artists, locate _.melody_, and get the lyrics through that. It's a really pretty song. Thanks to **Pekkle** for that.

I'm behind! Gah…! Thanks for the review- **GemmaniGirl**

Review or PM or Flame.


	44. Redemption

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

A/N: This chapter was supposed to be posted three days ago. Unfortunately, due to certain technical difficulties with my computer or the site, I was unable to post. Sorry.

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Redemption

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"Are we done with our little breather yet?" Kanaye snapped, seeming impatient.

_As usual_, Kako noted with a small smile. Beaming up at him, she said, "Yup! Let's go!"

Although he looked slightly embarrassed, Kanaye kept his cool demeanor and headed back to where everyone had been before coming to find Kouichi. "We have to hurry," he murmured, "because Lucemon _will_ be here soon."

"Yeah, keep your horses," Kouji snapped, pushing Kanaye out of the way to be in the lead. "Why should we trust you, anyway?"

"Because you left the egg back where Duskmon and Kouichi fought," Kanaye answered smoothly, placing his weight on his back foot and springing back forward without losing his balance. He didn't seem perturbed at the least. "I was wondering when you'd notice."

"N-NO!" Kouji frantically turned around and ran back, deeper into the cave, ignoring the stares he received. "Where'd it go?" His voice faded into a bare echo.

Kouichi rose to his feet, unable to ignore a sudden rush that swept through him. He stumbled forward before catching his balance. "Let's go look with him," Kouichi mumbled, feeling his cheeks warm up at the feeling of all eyes on him.

Everything was back to normal. He felt himself again. He could concentrate. He could live.

Nevertheless, he felt at a loss.

"Kouji...?" the older twin called out, stepping carefully into the cave. Now that he took a good look at it, it really _did_ resemble a cave by itself, and the rest of the tunnel were halls leading to it. _Hah, a ballroom for the Drimogemon_. He smiled at the thought, nearly falling to the side at the loss of a place to put his hand on. Again, Kouichi called out his twin's name, this time in a bare whisper he wasn't sure even he could hear.

In the dark, he could hear someone whimper, "The egg...the egg...Lobomon'll _kill_ me when he finds out I..." A groan. "Where is it...?"

Kouichi frowned and took a step forward, stopping immediately as his foot brushed against something. _The egg_, he decided, hearing a slight rolling noise. He kneeled down to pick it up, groping his way around in the darkness until he felt the smooth oval shell in his hand.

"Kouji," he started, standing up. Something felt terribly wrong there, as he took a step forward. His eyes refused to adjust, and Kouichi found himself stuck in eternal darkness.

_Break free of your past_.

Startled, Kouichi's eyes widened as he took another step forward. His sight returned, revealing a crying Kouji right in front of him. He tried to hide a frown as he held the egg forward. "Um, Kouji..." Kouichi whispered. _Did he even see me...?_

Kouji stopped crying momentarily and looked up. "Uh...! The egg!" Delighted, he stepped forward and snatched the egg out of Kouichi's hands, holding it up to examine it. "This is great! Now what do I do?" he asked eagerly, looking at his brother for a clue. "Crack it on a rock?" Kouji ran over to the boulder Duskmon had been sitting on as Kouji and began an attempt at hitting the egg against the rock. "Come on, _hatch_!"

"NO!" everyone screamed. Izumi was the only one to rush forward and snatch the egg out of Kouji's hands.

Kouichi tried to concentrate as Izumi began reprimanding Kouji for his actions, but something else was taking his attention away. It all seemed too convenient.

'_Even in darkness, you are able to see, because there is a light. You cannot let anger and pain blind you, or you will never see that light._' That was what Duskmon had said, and yet...

_Maybe pain_...? Kouichi bit his lip, unsure of what to think. _Maybe_..._It seems more likely than anger_. He took another gaze around the cave, frowning mentally while a solemn look was carefully placed on his face in case anyone dared to look at him. It was almost strange. He was seeing the cave with more light every second.

"G-guys," Kouichi started, feeling that he was the only one seeing things. "Do any of you-" The boy stopped, realizing they didn't hear him. His heart was hammering in his chest as he tentatively took a few steps forward, walking towards his brother. "Kouji..." Again, he stopped, eyes widening as a sense of fear filled him, rooting him to the spot.

_Kouichi_...

Kouichi swallowed, not daring to look around. _What is this?_ His breathing became rushed. "K-Kouji..." he tried again, managing to reach out a hand.

_Kouichi_...

"KOUICHI!"

Startled, Kouichi looked up, eyes widening at the sound of his name. He took a step forward, stumbled, and fell to one knee. "Uh...hi?" he said quite dumbly. _The same dull, dark tunnel_. _Odd_...

"Good, you're back with us," Kouji said, and his brother could note the start of some sarcastic comment. But an impatient clear of a throat from Kanaye interrupted any chance Kouji had. "Come on, let's go," the younger twin said instead, dragging Kouichi to his feet.

"W-wait...what about Lobomon?"

Kouji turned pink and started muttering incoherently under his breath. In his place, Kanaye explained aloud, "Bandana brain managed to hatch an egg after all. He'd make a lovely chicken, though I'd fear for the eggs nevertheless."

"Translation: Lobomon's egg went all shiny, you went all spacey, and the next second we find you all weird and Lobomon in Kouji's D-Tector," Kako whispered to Kouichi, ushering him forward. "And I nearly forgot to ask, but do any of you have any idea where Hideki or Rai might be?"

Kanaye purposely shouldered the girl with a smirk. "Maybe if you'd _move_ faster..."

"You jerk!" Kako practically screamed, outstretching her hands in an attempt to strange him, but Kanaye just stepped away, snorting. Kouichi also held Kako back by grabbing onto her shoulders, letting out a small sigh at her protests. The fact was, his attempt was completely half-hearted, and anyone could tell. Finally giving up on murdering Kanaye, the girl turned around and tilted her head to the side. "Still upset?" she asked quietly.

"Upset?" Kouichi repeated, gazing thoughtfully at the dirt ground in front of him. Kanaye was in the lead, navigating them through the tunnel. Kouichi was lagging behind in the back, with a gap between him and Kouji, who was several yards ahead. Again, he repeated, "Upset..."

"Yeah, you know, that feeling you get when you're sad," Kako added in a sarcastic tone before stopping and grabbing a hold of Kouichi's shoulder and turning him to face her. "What's with you? Only what? Five minutes, and you can't get over it?" she scowled.

"At least I'm not taking years, okay?" he blurted.

Kako stared at him in surprise. Her mouth opened, and she seemed ready to say something. "You..." Closing her mouth, Kako turned away and continued walking. "You...you're lagging behind. Hurry up."

He watched, unsure what to do, as she walked off. Quietly, he whispered to himself, "Yes, I'm upset. How can I not be...? I don't know myself anymore."

_All the more reason to run up to her and apologize, no?_ Lowemon appeared beside Kouichi, eyes set ahead. "Hurry up," he remarked aloud, "because she was right. You _are_ lagging behind."

A small smile appeared on Kouichi's face, followed by a short laugh. "Yes sir!" he said with a mock salute, before picking up his pace.

By the time he caught up to the crowd of his friends, Kouichi found Kako had disappeared to the front, or so he suspected. "Sorry, Takuya," he mumbled, startling the goggle boy from his incredibly interesting moment with Izumi that Kouichi wished he hadn't witnessed. Kouichi continued on, mumbling about krill, bandanas, and videogame freaks until he reached the front and found Kako and Kanaye ahead, arguing about which direction to go.

Kako stomped down with a foot and jabbed her finger out, poking Kanaye's shoulder. In a loud voice, she yelled, "I'm telling you, right is _always_ right!"

"And _who_ proved this theory correct?" Kanaye just snorted, facing the left hole. "Besides, it wouldn't hurt-"

"I'll hurt you, and _then_ it'll hurt!"

"That was lame, girly. You couldn't hurt a spider."

Kako reddened. "Th-that isn't fair! Spiders are disgusting!"

He just smirked. "There's a spider right there," Kanaye said, pointing to Kako.

"WHAT? WHERE?" Kako jumped forward, then hopped the rest of the way to Kouichi. "Get it away, get it away, get it away!" the girl squealed, grabbing onto Kouichi's hand and yanking on it.

"Um..." Kouichi gently removed Kako's hand. "So left it is...?" _Something still feels wrong_.

Kouji ran up to them, nearly bumping into his brother as he stopped. "Hey! Hear that?" He waited for the silence to take effect.

Kouichi narrowed his eyes on a single pebble on the ground. In the distance, he swore he heard a rumbling. "That's..." he began in a whisper, watching in amazement as the rock began jumping up and down. "Is...that someone's stomach? Because I really hope it is..." Swallowing, Kouichi looked up, noting that the walls were shaking as well. "Earthquake?" He had to yell over the noise for Kanaye to hear him.

Shaking his head, Kanaye replied, "Something else!"

_Something feels wrong_. _It isn't _me..._but then what is it?_ Kouichi frowned, less worried about what was coming by the second.

The light was flooding in again.

_Why? Am I the only one who sees this?_ Kouichi let out a weak cry as he felt himself become immobile once more. _Leave me alone!_

"Kimura, _move_!" Kanaye growled.

Kouichi felt his eyes widen as he was yanked back. His vision was still blurry, but he could make out several forms of breathless people. "Kanaye...Kouji," he whispered to himself. _But those other two?_ He squinted, hoping it would improve his eyesight.

"Kouichi, are you okay?" someone whispered beside him.

_Kako!_ _W-wait_..._why can't I talk? Kako! Kouji! Someone? LET ME TALK!_ Kouichi felt himself shrink. He could have sworn he was mouthing something. He felt his mouth moving. _Please_, _let me talk_...

One of the two figures he couldn't make out walked up to him. "Kako, how long has he been like this?"

_Ms. Kawai's voice!_ Kouichi felt his heart flip with joy. _Maybe now I can talk?_ _Ms. Kawai_-_no_...

Kako's voice answered hesitantly, "After Duskmon...well...I don't know...and we went to get Lobomon's egg. And now. But...I...don't think it was this bad last time!"

"Well no duh? Digimon, Kako, you couldn't tell a seizure from a cold!"

"WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? IS THAT SUPPOSED TO BE FUNNY?"

_Hideki_. _Kako, lower your voice_. _My head_..._hurts_. Kouichi tried opening his mouth again. Pain seared through him, traveling through his veins. A groan escaped him, or so he thought-he wasn't sure if anyone else heard.

"Rai, what happened...?" Kako's voice again, more anxious than he had heard it ever before. "He's okay, isn't he? He isn't going to die, right?"

"Yeah, that'll be the day. Kako, if Kouichi dies, we'll all die. Oh...no wait...that isn't funny." Hideki sounded annoyed as he muttered aloud, "That's _true_."

"Whatever! What's wrong with him?" This time, Kouji was the one being snappy.

"Shut up and let me see..." Kouichi felt himself being lifted up. It hadn't occurred to him that he had even fallen. He was sure he had been leaning against the wall. "Um...you know what? I have no idea, actually," Rai suddenly admitted, looking at Kouichi from one angle and then another. "I guess he'll have to figure it out himself."

"You're _kidding_." Kouji again.

A snort. _Kanaye,_ Kouichi guessed. He was right. As irked as ever, Kanaye snapped, "We need to get going. If we stay in one place too long, Lucemon _will_ get us."

Rai sounded equally annoyed. "Well we need to live with it! Would _you_ like to carry Kouichi?"

_Am I causing all this trouble_? _But I can't wake up_. _What did Duskmon say? Lowemon...? Someone, please_, _help me_...

'_You _will_ have to let go. It's best if you do so now,_' Duskmon said.

_Let go_. _Can I really?_ _Anyone? Ideas would be nice_...

_Pick yourself_, _Kouichi_. _Only you can choose_. _Hurry up_. _You heard Kanaye_, Lowemon reminded him.

_Memories_..._are just memories, then?_ _But I was there_..._then_..._maybe_..._it's experience? Not memories?_ Kouichi let out a sigh, feeling his eyes shut. The blur was gone momentarily, the headache was clearing, but he could still feel the ruins of it. _Time to clean up_.

"I'm...fine," Kouichi said slowly, as if learning how to speak. "I'm fine," he repeated.

"You're okay?" Hideki suddenly blurted, staring at Kouichi as if he was a zombie.

Kouichi returned the look with a confused gaze of his own. "Yeah...?"

"Finally!" Kako threw her arms around Kouichi, releasing a shaky breath. "Don't...do that. It's scary."

Reddening, Kouichi asked in a quiet voice, "C-could you let go…please?"

Kouji noted this with a grin. Raising an eyebrow, he cackled, "Hey, is Kouichi being allergic to girls again?"

"At least he _knows_ how to behave around girls," Rai said loudly, directing a glare at Hideki.

"Shush. Lead the way, Kanaye!" Hideki pointed to the right passage, then stopped, seeing a giant boulder blocking it. "Oh, wait...that's right. The piece of junk decided to block the way, huh?" He scratched the back of his head and turned to the others. "Anyone care to break it?"

"Let me!" Kouji said quickly, whipping out his D-Tector. "Spirit-"

"Wait! That's what's wrong!" Kouichi suddenly shouted, pointing at the D-Tector. "You said Lobomon went straight into the D-Tector! But...but...why aren't any of the other digimon in the D-Tector?" He gazed from Kouji to Hideki to Kanaye to Rai. "It...doesn't make sense!"

Rai gestured to Kouji. "Well, Lobomon was in a digi-egg, right?" she asked. When this was confirmed with a nod, she continued, "He isn't developed yet."

"Oh...n-no...wait..." Kouichi paused, staring at the D-Tector for several seconds before bursting out into laughter. "I'm...going insane, huh?" he said aloud.

"I'll say," Kako snorted. She pulled him to his feet and pushed him forward. "Well, if Lobomon isn't developed yet, someone _else_ break the boulder. And how'd it get to following you two anyway?" the girl asked Rai. "I thought that was just in the movies!"

Shrugging, Hideki replied, "Then Lucemon must _love_ the movies."

-------------------------------------

"Um, so what's this place?" Junpei asked aloud, taking a casual look from one side to another. _Talk about bright_..._it looks like a baby's nursery_.

Rai took a few steps forward and turned around to face the group. Gesturing behind her, she said, "Welcome to the Core."

There was silence until Kako blurted, "But it's so bright!"

"But it's so bright," Hideki mimicked in his highest falsetto. "Oh no! I think I'm blind!"

The girl snorted and pushed her brother to the side. "Har, har...very funny."

Hideki just bowed with a grin. "Why thank you!" he said, taking another bow.

"Shut up," Rai snapped, looking serious. "Now you're all smart _children_," she said, stressing the 'children' as she looked at Hideki, "so of course you know that the Core is only so small. In fact, it's actually pretty large. Think of it like a nucleus of a cell. We need to head to the nucleolus-"

"Huh?" This outburst was mainly from Shinya, though Tomoki was equally confused.

Shaking her head, Rai muttered, "Never mind..." With a sigh, she explained, "We need to get to the _actual_ center. That's where Lucemon will be. And as of now, we're on his grounds. We have to expect _everything_."

Ritsuo rose a hand and shouted out, "Including a ten minute break in which Lucemon provides us milkshakes?"

"Milkshakes that could be poisoned," came the dry reply. "Anyway, Kanaye had a point earlier. We really _can't_ stay in one place too long, or Lucemon'll find us."

_Now they're listening_. Kanaye just snorted and walked past Rai. "It's this way. I suggest you be on your guard at all times," he said, turning his head slightly and looking back to focus his gaze on Kako. "_Especially_ certain people." Looking back in front of him, Kanaye smirked and continued through the nearest tunnel.

"I have a question, though!" Tomoki shouted. "Why is the Core underground?"

Rai, who had been ready to follow Kanaye, turned around and explained, "Well you see, the Core was _always_ underground. We were standing on top of it the entire time. I guess Duskmon and Hideki just spared us the trouble."

As they all began following Kanaye, Tomoki found himself muttering, "Why does it seem like they're making this up as they go?"

Shinya just shrugged. Tossing Takuya's goggles up in the air (he had stolen them without his brother noticing), he guessed, "Probably because half the time they are?"

-------------------------------------

"Yeah...um...we're lost, aren't we?" Takuya asked, gazing around the room. They were back where they had started, in the same, colorful room. All the bright colors reminded Takuya of puke.

Kanaye frowned, stepping forward, then to his right, then to his left. Growling, he clenched his fists and snapped, "Naoko, it's _her_, isn't it?"

"Which was what I was _trying_ to tell you about...oh, I don't know...five thousand times?" Naoko retorted.

"Honestly, listen to the girl!" Fujitaka muttered under his breath.

At this, Ritsuo snorted. Smirking at the younger boy, he said, "You're just saying that because she's your girlfriend."

"So what?"

"Biased!"

"And what about you? Anyone gives you candy, and you'll totally root for them. Hell, that's how Lucemon got you, huh?" Fujitaka sneered.

"QUIET!" Angrily, Kanaye whirled around. His eyes almost looked blood red, more so than anyone else's, and they were _all_ lacking sleep. "_Where_ is she?" he demanded, walking up to Naoko.

"That...will take some time," the girl admitted, folding her arms and looking perplexed.

"We don't have time!"

"Well shut up then, and let me think! This is _Ai_ we're talking about, after all," Naoko snapped, rivaling Kanaye's look of annoyance.

"Ai?" Kouichi pushed his way to the front, a scowl on her face. "Not her!"

"_Her_," Kanaye replied in a grave tone, accompanying this with a slight nod.

A groan escaped from both Kouichi and Takuya. "Wait...is she that bad? I thought her ideas for the dance were pretty good," Kouji commented, looking confused.

Kako walked up to the bandana boy and just glared at him. "May I remind you," she said slowly, "she's the same...insult to girls...that attempted to blackmail Kouichi into a date and tried spreading rumors about me?"

Kouichi, who had been nodding in agreement with Takuya with every word the girl had said suddenly stopped and looked at her curiously. "What rumors?"

"Um...so, Naoko, find anything yet?" Kako asked loudly, twitching nervously.

Letting out a sigh, Naoko turned to them, looking slightly worried. "Well...for one thing, I wish Duskmon were here. I have a few questions...other than that, I'm guessing it's some kind of illusion. Ai loves tricks...what can I say?"

"Lucemon loves the movies, Ai loves tricks. How very interesting," Hideki remarked, "but may I remind you that we have absolutely _no_ time whatsoever?"

Nodding, Kouichi murmured, "He's right. We need to get this over with, and fast."

"Right! Now, where would this..._Ai_ be?" Hideki looked around, sniffing the air and ignoring the strange looks he received. "And...why does it smell like perfume?"

"Oops." The bright colors faded into dark gray slabs of rock. Above, there was a protruding rock, and there stood Ai, dressed in her usually bright colors.

"Gaaah!" Takuya covered his eyes. "I'm _bliiiiind_..."

Junpei snorted and pried the goggle boy's hands off his face. "If you're blind, I'm a dancing monkey. Well, do you see me dancing?" he demanded, once Takuya's eyes were opened.

Silence.

"Can I get back to you on that?"

"NO!"

"FOCUS!" Izumi barked, hitting the two upside the head. She turned her attention to Ai, looking very incensed. "And what do _you_ want?" the girl snapped, folding her arms and walking towards the other girl as she hopped down from the slab of rock.

Ai just laughed lightly as she landed gently on the floor in a kneeling position, then rose on her feet. Instead of answering Izumi, she walked straight to Kanaye and, huffing, folded her arms and declared with a pout, "You promised you'd always be on _my_ side."

"You're a real brat. I can't stand you for more than a second," Kanaye snapped. "The only reason I made up that lie was because of my _mother_."

"And your _mother_ will be upset to know that you've betrayed your family!"

"Nonsense! Lucemon's a thieving pig!"

"Oh really?"

"Hey, I _really_ hate to interrupt this lover's spat, but...we really have to be going," Kouji said, pushing Kanaye aside and staring straight into Ai's eyes. "Either you let us go, or we'll go anyway."

She just let out a small laugh. Stepping up to Kouji, Ai whispered, "You're really cute, but it's a pity..."

"Uhh..."

"_Out of the way_!" Kanaye pushed the bandana boy to the side, cursing slightly as a knife's blade shot out of nowhere and skimmed past his sleeve, ripping it open and leaving the skin untouched. Kouji fell to the ground, looking up at the two, positively stunned. In the meantime, Kanaye examined his sleeve, then ripped it off. "Yes, _brat_. Are you happy? You ruined my favorite shirt."

"_Favorite?_" Kako practically screeched. "It's _ugly_."

"It's called...oh, never mind! Just shut up and get going!" Kanaye snapped, glaring back at her. "We'll take care of Ai!"

"We?" Kouji echoed, rising to his feet.

Stepping forward, Fujitaka snorted, "Duh. We." A wide gesture to Naoko and Ritsuo answered the rest.

"Ohh..._right_. In that case, let's make our leave." Kouji glanced at his brother and nodded.

Kouichi bit his lower lip, trying to come to a consensus. "B-but..." he began, until Hideki grabbed both of his shoulders and shook him roughly.

"Look, they'll be fine. Except...Shinya should technically be with them, but he's too inexperienced at the moment. Now listen here. Kanaye is almost as good with a sword as you are, if not ten times more lethal. You're too nice for your own good. Learn when to let go!" Hideki said, letting him go and racing after Kouji and the others, who were following Shinya and Tomoki through a small opening under the protruding rock Ai had been standing on.

_Let go_. _Like Duskmon said_. Kouichi took one look at Kanaye and nodded. "Good luck," he breathed, running past the boy and straight through the opening to catch up to the others.

A snort escaped the others as they watched Kouichi leave. "You'll need it more," Kanaye muttered, his gaze set on Ai. "Ready, everyone...?"

Still, he really _wasn't_ sure who would need it more.

-------------------------------------

They were running.

_Why are we running_...? Aloud, he voiced his thoughts, "Why are we running?"

They all came to a halt and began wondering the same thing. Kouichi just shook his head and snapped, "Keep going!" It didn't feel safe, staying in one place like that. In fact, he preferred running.

Was that why they were running?

They were running.

_Why_...?

Kouichi shook his head and continued to run until they saw a faint glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel, so faint, Kouichi began to wonder if it really existed. It didn't seem to be getting any closer.

"This is real," he whispered to himself, wincing as he tripped over a rock and was sent sprawling forward.

"Kouichi...?" Kouji stopped and turned back with a frown appearing on his face. "You seem really out of it. Come on, hurry up."

"This is _real_, Kouji," the older twin repeated, rising to his feet. "Not _digital_. It's _real_. You realize how much trouble we're in if we don't do this right? _We're_ at an advantage in the _real_ world, but Lucemon conveniently brought up this Area. And why is that?"

"Keep _running_ and tell me!" Kouji yelled, grabbing his brother's hand and yanking him forward.

Kouichi did as his brother requested and continued, "In the Digital World, _we're_ the ones at a disadvantage. We're humans, even as _digimon_. But closing the Area...I'm not sure if..." He let out a frustrated sigh. "We secured the points, but that isn't good enough! I actually want to _live_ my life, not _fight_. I always figured if there's too many factors, you have to make sure that you look through all of them to make sure everything is perfect, but..."

"But...?"

"But by looking through all of them, you tend to forget the _important_ factors. And that's all I want to concentrate on right now. What matters to me most."

The bandana boy just grinned. "And that would be everything, right?"

Kouichi returned this with a smile. Pushing forward with his brother, he nodded. "Right."

They reached the light and continued through, catching up with the rest of their friends.

Kouichi nearly choked in surprise, seeing Piximon flying around a familiar face, much to Kako's distress. Laughter bubbled through him, but he managed to keep it hidden.

"Marise..."

-------------------------------------

Kanaye bit his lower lip, feeling the digivice in his pocket. Never _once_ had he wanted to digivolve, and he didn't want to start now. He was confident in his own skills with a sword, or his fists.

However, he wasn't one to hit a girl.

Everyone else was already digivolved, ready to fight, just waiting for him.

For him to give an order or for him to _digivolve_?

Kanaye's grip on the device tightened, his eyes shut, and his head bowed down. "Let's..." _Maybe_..._just this once_. His eyes flashed open and he looked up. His discomfort was painfully obvious. _At least I digivolved_.

"Woah...Kanaye digivolved," Arbormon remarked to Mercurymon, glancing sideways at Devimon. "This might get interesting.

"Oh, my...digimon," Ai snorted, digivolving herself. LadyDevimon stood before them, looking amused.

Ai always looked amused. Kanaye supposed it was only habit. But something about her eyes made him wonder what the reason was this time.

Clearing her throat, Ranamon suggested, "Maybe an attack would be nice about now...?"

"Uh...right!" the other two stuttered, returning their attention to their current problem.

"Dark vapor!"

"Roundhouse punt!"

"Dark reflection!"

The attacks were easily evaded, and LadyDevimon just laughed, turning to Devimon and awaiting his attack.

_I don't want to_, Devimon thought, looking annoyed. _Evil wing_. _Touch of evil_. _Why does it have to be _evil? Instead, he brought out his sword and stared at it. Compared to his current state, it was small. The only reason it came to him was because of the jewel.

He didn't want that. Holding a hand over the jewel embedded just below the base of the blade, Devimon muttered something, smirking to himself as the black jewel shattered, resulting in everyone falling silent in surprise.

LadyDevimon was the only one who gasped, pulling herself backwards and into the air in horror. "You _dare_ reject Lucemon's gifts?" she hissed, eyes narrowing on him.

Devimon stared at the blade, allowing his energy to pulse through it. _I wonder if this is how Kimura felt when he was possessed by Duskmon_. _Lost in darkness_. _And yet, it's the only way _we_ can fight_. _Perhaps_ that _is why I hate him_. By now, the sword was completely enveloped in darkness controlled by Devimon alone, its length doubled.

"Reject...?" he repeated. "No...renounce. Discard. Deny. They aren't gifts, Ai. They're just the strings he uses to control us. We're mere puppets to him." Devimon felt the sneer slip onto his face, the sneer he had been hiding ever since Ai stormed out of the room. "I'm not letting a worm like him control me, Ai. Sad thing is, I thought you had sense to see the same way. Pity, really. I guess we really _aren't_ in the same boat. I'm several _ahead_."

"Wh-why...you..."

Finally, he could be in control of his _own_ destiny. His life had changed so much...he wasn't sure who he was anymore. He didn't care, either.

In front of him, LadyDevimon was gathering enough energy to destroy all of the Area, or so he guessed. It didn't matter.

"You..." he muttered, brandishing the sword, "you aren't my concern. I have _better_ things to do." Smirking, he extended the blade forward, awed by the straightness of the outer coat of darkness. "Go away." Mercilessly, Devimon swung the blade down onto LadyDevimon, watching it shatter.

Watching as LadyDevimon lost control of the energy she had been gathering.

The dark orb disappeared, enraging the deviless. "Now!" Mercurymon shouted, following this command by sending an attack towards the unsuspecting LadyDevimon. "Dark reflection!"

"Dark vapor!"

"Power pummel!"

"Let's change this, shall we?" Devimon drew himself up, gaze set on a shrieking LadyDevimon. "Dark wing!"

_After all_, he thought, watching as the attack hit her head-on, _was it not Shakespeare who claimed in the character of Romeo that a rose by any other name is still a rose? Thus, the same applies for attacks_. He smiled at the sight of Ai's fractal code and de-digivolved, walking up to the girl as she collapsed into a pitiful heap on the floor. He hadn't expected _her_ to be a challenge, but merely _himself_.

"Get up," Kanaye muttered, gazing down at the girl in disgust.

Her breath was audible as she looked up at him defiantly. "Why?" Ai snapped. "After all we worked for, why are you throwing our work away? Is it because they'll win?"

_Win_...? _That isn't why, is it?_ Looking aside and contemplating the question, Kanaye found himself muttering, mainly to himself, "It isn't a question of _winning_, but of what is _right_. I'm human, Ai. I refuse to be a slave to _anyone_, digimon _or_ human. And besides..." Meeting her eyes once more, Kanaye mumbled, "I don't feel like playing along with destiny." Kanaye released a breath, feeling as if all his worries had been blown away. He continued to walk past Ai, past the shards of metal from his sword, and through the entrance that Kouichi and the others had gone through. Perhaps redemption would await him at the other end.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

I _was_ going to throw in a song ('Realize' sung by melody.) and end it with "Marise," but I figured, break from horrible song-chapters is needed. It was a pretty good moment. Unintentionally formed. XP I was listening to 'Realize' (I don't have the English lyrics memorized), but somehow the words just came to form that song. So I went on a craze, trying to listen to music when writing, believing it would help me. Because in all honesty, Kouichi's going a bit _too_ crazy for me. He just won't stop changing. I think I got him this chapter. Kanaye's part was especially hard. He's been changing on me too...

Stupid boys.

Thank you for the reviews! They were awesome-**Lady Hikari-Yami, GemmaniGirl**

This should be wrapped up in...three chapters?

Review or PM or Flame.


	45. Piecing Together The Puzzle

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Putting The Pieces Together

-------------------------------------

Junpei's hand shot in the air. "I'm confused," he announced, staring straight at Marise.

Slowly, more hands rose into the air until Hideki, shooting his hand into the air without a care, declared, "Hey, I'm your son, and I don't get it. What's more is, aren't you supposed to be at the Japan point?"

"That isn't Marise!" Kouichi found himself yelling. Startled by his own outburst, he tried to shrink into the crowd, covering his mouth as he did.

"Correct," the soft voice replied. "I'm merely a shadow."

"Like...Anti-Duskmon."

"Again, correct." His gaze fell on Rai. "I believe it's time to explain, don't you?" Nodding, Rai looked up and met the shadow's eyes, waiting for him to continue. "If Marise was to perish, Seraphimon would perish. It would be too dangerous to just _wait_ for another Seraphimon to be reborn, so Marise split himself. Darkness and light. Sound...familiar?" Eyes turned to the twins.

The twins exchanged glances and Kouji asked, "So...the Marise in Japan is light...?"

"Actually, no. I am."

"Huuuuh? No, you know what? Just stop! I thought shadow meant...like...digimon shadow!" Kouji shouted pointedly, glaring at Marise...rather, his shadow. He wasn't sure what to call him anymore.

"The _digimon_ shadow is what you said it was: a _digimon_ shadow. Shadows aren't limited to one meaning, just as other words aren't, Kouji."

Before anyone else could speak up, Tomoki murmured, "So basically...Marise split shadow and real...darkness and light? Then..." He looked up, triumphant. "Then that must have happened in the _Digital_ World!"

An amused nod confirmed this thought, and Tomoki jumped up excitedly. The shadow murmured, "What resulted was really a three-way split. With two halves separated, Marise's spirit was left in a sort of limbo.

"Similarily, Seraphimon was allowed to stay, but Duskmon, who was never meant to exist, was brought back. For Marise's spirit, what you named, 'Anti-Duskmon,' was created, remaining in the pit of Duskmon's mind, his own peronal limbo. When Duskmon possessed you, Kouji, your two minds formed as one, and what was his became yours. In other words, Anti-Duskmon was revealed, as was the book.

"This, however, created an unfortunate balance. Duskmon being defeated resulted in a loss of two digital shadows. And so now, Lucemon will more likely than not take advantage of this imbalance that allows him more power. If anything, he was waiting for this," the shadow concluded.

Hideki folded his arms, a serious look gracing his face. "And this is bad for us. If the halves of Marise disappear, the spirit goes bye-bye and we're screwed without a Seraphimon. Oh great," he muttered, now looking grumpy. "Those stupid royal pains just _had_ to kill Angemon..."

"That's not the problem," the shadow said quietly.

Everyone fell silent until Izumi snapped, "Then what is? And why can't you explain_ everything_ at one time? Is it so hard for your pathetic skulls to understand that _we_ can't keep up with all the changes? And-"

She was forced to stop as Takuya came from behind to cover her mouth with a hand, telling her in a hushed voice, "Calm down, Izumi. Let him explain and _then_ yell at him."

"No," Kako muttered, looking sourly at the shadow. "I want to understand. Sad thing is, I bet the _least_ informed in this room is me and the most informed is Kouji. I have _every_ right to know. We _all_ do. This is our home, isn't it? _Our_ planet. So tell me, what the hell is going on?"

"At this point in time," Rai started, but stopped just as quickly, hesitating as all eyes fell on her. "A-at this point in time, what we _really_ need to be worried about is Marise _leaving_. Splitting your soul is easy enough, but..."

Hideki's eyes widened as if he understood what was coming next. Seeing this, Kako snapped, "BUT?"

"But this comes with a great repercussion."

Before Rai could continue, Hideki spared her, explaining to them, "Which would be that putting the two halves _back_ requires great..." Sheepishly, he rubbed the back of his head. "Man, I wish Ichiro were here. He'd put the words in my mouth."

Kouichi frowned, then turned to look at Kako, one eyebrow raised. "Hey...I just remembered...Ichiro's supposed _knowledge_ never really helped us," he muttered.

"Oh...yeah...and the jewelry was pointless, too, even if it's a late birthday present," Kako added.

"WOULD YOU TWO STAY ON THE TOPIC?" Hideki thundered. When they just stared at him, he cleared his throat and continued, "Anyway, Ichiro's pretty quizzical. You got me there."

"_Now_ who's going off topic?" Kako snapped.

"It strains the spirit," Rai muttered.

Everyone turned to her. "Whaaaat?" everyone chorused.

Rai resisted the urge to slap her forehead. Through gritted teeth, she snapped, "For goodness sakes, pay attention! To put two halves back into a whole strains the spirit. Chances are it may not work, or the spirit will cease to exist."

"And if it ceases to exist, Seraphimon ceases to exist," Marise's shadow finished calmly.

Junpei scratched his head. "Wow, how complicated. So this is up to Marise, then?"

"In a way. But there's more, huh?" Tomoki asked.

"STOP!" Shinya shouted.

"Keep going!" Takuya insisted.

"STOP!"

"GO!"

"No, I have a question," Shinya snapped, completely serious. "Why can't you just _glue_ the two halves back together?"

"That requires spirit," Tomoki informed him.

Shinya shook his head. "No, I mean, think about it. Glue is weak, right? And um...from what I've heard, that Chaos junk binds or strings or whatevers the worlds, right? So why not use that?"

Silence.

"Are you _sure_ you want to be a goggle brain, krill?" Kouichi asked, squatting down in front of Shinya and looking him straight in the eye. "I think you've got the potential to do a _lot_ more than that."

Scratching the back of his head, Takuya nodded and murmured sheepishly, "He's got a point..."

"Can I be a _bandana brain?_" Shinya asked, sounding excited.

"JOB TAKEN!" Kouji snapped, glaring down at the younger boy and folding his arms. Then, looking at Rai and the shadow, he snapped, "Big deal. Chaos is better glue than spirit. So how do we do that when _Lucemon_ is in control of Chaos?"

"Switch that," the shadow said dryly.

"Huh?"

"Chaos is in control of Lucemon."

"Wait...can we _please_ go over this again?"

-------------------------------------

"Something wrong, Kanaye?" Ritsuo asked, noticing the boy was on edge.

Suppressing a growl, Kanaye jerked his head back. "She's following, isn't she?"

"Sadly, yes," Naoko answered, slapping her forehead at the sound of amazement from the other two boys as they looked behind them to find Ai persistently on their trail. "Honestly, people. Being a _little_ more observant wouldn't hurt."

"You kidding? Any more, and I might die!" Ritsuo exclaimed.

Scowling, Fujitaka threw a glare at the older boy. "Shut it, Ritsuo."

"I'm speaking the whole truth here," he told her, "even when I say that I seriously think Ai's not much of a threat anymore."

"No...just a threat to my insanity," Kanaye muttered, wincing at the confused, "HUH?" that came from Ritsuo. "If she keeps bugging me, Ritsuo, I'm going to go _insane_. Sad thing is, you're in the same boat as Ai in this case."

"Ouch," Naoko and Fujitaka chorused.

But Ritsuo just grinned. "Hey, I'm just here to lighten the mood. Stop frowning. You're like bandana head." A pause. "Except...less stupid."

"He isn't stupid," Kanaye mumbled under his breath.

"Say again?"

Scowling, Kanaye said aloud, "Nothing. Hurry up. We'll be left behind."

"It's a dead end up ahead," Ai snapped.

"Like your head."

"Oh, very witty, Kanaye," the girl replied sourly. "Next thing we know, you'll be balancing on a ball and claiming you're a chimpanzee. Hurry up and admit it."

"Admit _what?_"

"That you beat me!"

"I know I did, now why do I have to admit it?" Kanaye sneered, turning around. His eyes glittered as he continued, "I _don't_ have to, because it's pointless. I don't care if I beat you. I'm sure that pathetic brother of the goggle brain could have beat you with both eyes closed."

"That's a lie!"

Kanaye just laughed. "Lucemon gave you power, did he? He made you an overconfident blunder. He doesn't back up his words. I thought you knew."

"Liar!"

He just snorted and turned around once more. "Why, then, do tell, are you following me if you still revere Lucemon?"

"They're at it again," Ritsuo said in a sing-song voice.

Naoko just rolled her eyes and murmured, "Hurry up. I think we're at the end."

There was a cough of disbelief from the boy beside her. "Didn't Ritsuo say that five seconds after we started?" Fujitaka demanded.

"Well..."

"Thought so."

"But Ritsuo is..."

"Good point."

"Sheez, you kids these days. Arguing with your significant others," Ritsuo muttered under his breath. He folded his arms and exhaled sharply. "You all make me feel old."

-------------------------------------

"In summary, Marise split himself in two, though not literally, his spirit went into limbo, the same thing had to happen in the Digital World, but Duskmon is gone, so there's an imbalance. Shouldn't this give us the break, though?" Kouji demanded, leaning back against the wall as he looked at Rai. He didn't even want to talk to the shadow Marise. It was all too confusing for him to understand.

Kako shook her head. "Think of it this way. The heavier they are, the harder they fall," she told him.

"And minutes ago, you were complaining about how little you knew compared to me."

"We weren't the ones getting e-mails from Lucemon," Tomoki countered with a slight cough.

Silence filled the room. Turning to the younger boy and narrowing his eyes, Kouji asked quietly, "How?"

All eyes turned to a blushing Tomoki as he explained, "Lucemon sent me an e-mail. I went to Kako's house and called everyone up with her help."

Junpei just groaned and muttered under his breath, "Making me feel stupid..." No one paid him any heed.

"Well _that_ makes sense why Lucemon was so easily able to trap Kouji," Rai mused. "Only thing is..._how_ did he get Kouji's e-mail?"

Shrugging, Kouji murmured, "The only time I give my e-mail out is if someone needs to e-mail me or-"

"Or school," Kouichi murmured, grinning triumphantly. "I bet I'm right!"

"About what?"

Everyone looked over their shoulder, seeing Kanaye. "Uh...? Oh!" Kouichi mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "About Lucemon getting Kouji's e-mail through school! I kind of found it weird how there were feathers and Aizawa's office was completely trashed. There's been no computer since, right?"

"OH...never thought of it that way," Kako muttered. "Come to think of it...Gramps hardly touches the computer nowadays."

"It...kind of makes sense," Hideki admitted.

"Of course." Kanaye growled as the others stepped into the light. "Because...Lucemon is..."

"You wouldn't dare," a girl hissed.

"OH NO!" Kouichi and Takuya blurted, jumping back. "She's _alive_?"

"That's kind of harsh. Were you hoping otherwise?" Naoko asked with a smile.

Kouichi remained silent, gazing red-faced at his shoes. Takuya, on the other hand, cleared his throat and began, "Actually..."

Harumphing, Ai folded her arms and stepped in front of Kanaye. "You're all going to lose! Just wait and see!"

"You're one to talk, loser. Oh, that reminds me," Kanaye suddenly muttered, grabbing a hold of Ai's arm. "_This_ needs to go."

"Wha-No!" she cried as he slipped off her wristband.

"Kimura!"

Kouichi turned to the other boy, startled. "Yeah...?" he asked, a confused look on his face.

"Sword."

"O-Okay..." Kouichi fumbled with his D-Tector, nearly cutting his arm off as the sword came out. Letting out a nervous laugh, he handed the sword to Kanaye. "Here..." _This is kind of weird_.

Kanaye snatched it out of Kouichi's hands and threw the wristband on the ground. In one smooth movement, the tip of the sword had shattered the crystal, scattering the shards everywhere.

"I've got _one_ question for you, Kanaye..." Kouji suddenly said aloud, pushing through Junpei and Shinya and walking up in front of Kanaye. "Before...with the sword and the punching and such...was that just a result of being Devimon's shadow, or was it natural skill?"

Looking grumpy, Kanaye turned away and muttered, "I take _no_ pride in being Devimon's shadow."

The bandana boy seemed to consider this. Turning away, he nodded. "Got it."

An awkward silence befell them.

"Alright, people. We can ignore Ai, and Fujitaka for the heck of it...maybe even Hideki. But right now, I think we need a few answers fr-where'd that shadow of Dad go...?" Kako suddenly asked, looking around the cave.

"Um...Kako," Rai started.

"I swear, he was right here!"

"Kako!"

"_Right_ here!"

"Kako, Marise's other half...well...displaying it takes a lot of spirit power, I guess you could call it. _That's_ why fusing the two halves is grueling work itself. You have to maintain the second half _and_ glue the two halves together. It's like..." Rai looked around for help.

"Like gluing round pieces of wood together. You want to hold both up and glue them, and you don't want them rolling around," Kouji put in. "It gets messy, sometimes it even slides off. And you have to hold it a while before it's steady. That kind of power-"

"Not even _Seraphimon_ has it," Rai concluded sadly.

Junpei spoke up before the silence could settle in again. "So...Chaos would be like a sort of...catalyst...?"

"Yes," Rai said. "You could say that. It-"

"Woah, woah! Is that _Chemistry_ I'm hearing?" Takuya blurted. "Please, save me! I'm dying in Biology as it is!"

Shrugging, the older boy replied, "Only word I could think of."

"Some tenth grader you are!"

"Stay on track!" Izumi snapped, hitting the two over the head.

Rai let out a sigh. "It...won't necessarily _not_ be used up, though. But..." She stopped again and stared at the ground. "For...what we need to accomplish, in actuality, we'll need a lot more than _just_ Chaos. I'm not worried about Lucemon. I have faith that you can beat him, but..."

"Chaos is the real challenge?" Tomoki supplied.

Rai nodded. "Chaos is almost unchallengeable. It's a force of nature. You can't _stop_ an earthquake. You can't _stop_ a volcano. But...that's pretty much what we're trying to do."

Kouichi's eyes widened. His hands clenched, he asked quietly, "Has everything else...been a lie up to now?"

"What do you mean?" asked Rai, seeming genuinely surprised.

"Has this been some stupid sick amusement...? Duskmon...Kouji...setting those two against us...we all thought _Lucemon_ was the real enemy! Or at least _I_ did! Why did we have to suffer _all_ of that if we just needed to get to Chaos? Did we _need_ to wait for the Area to be set up? Did we-"

"_Think_ about it, Kouichi," Hideki snapped. "Two months ago, you _still_ couldn't wield a sword properly. And you want to know the truth? _You still can't_. Chaos can't be taken lightly. Hell, _this world_ can't be taken lightly. _This_ world, the Digital World...it's a big thing, twerp. For _Chaos_ to have control of both these worlds and _more_...Chaos isn't just any old enemy. _So what if you beat Lucemon before?_ This is _our_ world. Even with the Area being from the Digital World, _digimon are still weak_. _Lucemon has been planning this for years_. We only knew about it a year ago. _Now_ do you think we shouldn't have had to suffer through '_all of that'_?"

"No..."

"_There we go_."

"But did you have to spin lies...?"

"We _didn't_."

"Then why couldn't you just tell us the truth right away? Why not say, 'Hey, Lucemon isn't the real enemy! Chaos is!' or 'We're going to say bye-bye to the Digital World after we win!' or-" Kouichi choked on his words. "Why couldn't you just be straightforward?" he cried.

Kako cleared her throat. "I could say the same to you, Kouichi. Heck, I could say the same to _all_ of you." Her eyes darted from person to person until they fell on Kanaye. "But, you know...I think it was just part of the deal."

Scowling, Kanaye looked away and snapped, "Stop staring at me!"

"Actually, I was wondering when you'd confess that I'm better than you."

"In your dreams!"

"Stop getting off track," Kouji growled, looking annoyed. "Look, you've all got a point, but quit with the dramatics. Let's face the facts and _now_. The Digital World will be destroyed if we win. If we lose, _we'll_ be destroyed along with all other dimensions out there. We have to beat _Chaos_, not _Lucemon_. We can't lose hope, and we have to keep our will strong! Who the hell do you guys think you are, complaining like that?

"Kako," he snapped, glaring at the girl. "You think _you're_ ignorant? What about all the people _living on the Earth ignorantly?_ They are less informed you, believe me. And Kouichi! Give me a break! _Straightforward?_ We're only human. Since when are we straightforward?"

"Has anyone else noticed he's only been picking on Kako and Kouichi so far?" Takuya asked aloud.

"Don't worry! I'll get to you," Kouji muttered. "Look, Ai, Kanaye beat you. Accept it. Why are you still bugging us about Lucemon? _We don't care?_ And Kanaye, give us a break from your 'I'm so superior' attitude, because you aren't. Fujitaka can stop glaring at me, and I think we can all work this out together, Naoko. Stop acting like Ms. Smarty. Ritsuo and Junpei...you two are _the_ laziest people I know. The ones who actually have brains, but don't use them. Even Shinya's using his, and he's younger than all of us! What about _Tomoki?_ How is it that he can contribute more than all of us pooled together. And look at _you_, Takuya! Some _leader_ you are. Goggle head-"

"We've all got our _own_ complaints, Kouji," Izumi interrupted, glaring at the bandana boy fiercely. "But you don't see us complaining, do you?"

Kouji returned the glare. "I'm not _done_. Why is it, Takuya, that Izumi has to stop you from getting off track? And Rai and Hideki - _stop your arguing_. We _know_ you two like each other, for goodness sakes, why can't you just _admit_ it? You're worse than Kako and Kouichi! The only way _we'll_ win is if we work together. So listen, would you?" He drew a breath. "I _know_, I'm the most at fault here. But I'm trying to learn from my mistakes. I don't want you guys to waste time and make the same mistakes. Give me a break here and just let me..."

"How come...you didn't complain about Piximon?" Kako asked, gazing at the digimon who had fallen asleep in her arms.

"He's asleep," Kouji muttered, collapsing on the ground. He lay back, staring at the dark ceiling. "Listen...I've thought about it. I don't understand, even now. I know there's a lot we don't understand, and the blanks can be filled if we just _share_ our information. Let's just think, okay? Start from the beginning."

"The puzzle," Kouichi muttered.

"Puzzle...?" everyone echoed, gazing at the older twin curiously.

Nodding, Kouichi explained, "I figured...I could make this analogous to a puzzle. A really big _confusing_ one, too. Because...think about it. So many pieces can fit in one place, but only one will work. Right now, more than ever, I want to put it together. And now." He let his eyes sweep around the room, meeting everyone's eyes but Kouji's. Finally, Kouichi sat on the ground beside his brother. "Then...let's start."

"We don't have-" Rai started, but Hideki lifted a hand, covering her mouth.

"The kid...he's got a point," Hideki mumbled, letting his gaze fall to the ground. "They're...both twerps...but...they're _smart_ twerps."

Rai let out an exasperated sigh as she pushed his hand away. "Fine. I'll give you ten minutes tops," she snapped.

No one paid any attention.

"So this started when?"

"Lucemon. As soon as you all destroyed him in the Digital World, somehow he managed to skirt through the entire shadow system created by Chaos and enter a new host with knowledge on the Digital World. Up to this time I had to prepare with Kanaye for this moment. I'm not sure about anyone else. Naoko, Fujitaka and Ritsuo were less informed. I don't know if they cared," Ai put in.

"We didn't," Ritsuo agreed.

Fujitaka snorted, "_He_ didn't. Naoko and I minded very much, actually."

"But it was nice," Naoko insisted. "Anyway, we joined _online_ a year after Lucemon came back. We only met Kanaye and Ai this school year. Technically...over the summer, but..."

"They didn't do much. It was mostly Ritsuo and myself on the computer, trying to input the codes to bring up the Area. The codes are too complex to understand. It would take hours, so we'll skip talking about them. Just know, they brought up the Area. Unfortunately, you can't just input the codes any old way. It has to be done in a specific place, by a specific person. In Hawaii, it was Lucemon. In Japan, Ritsuo. I made sure that Grumblemon, controlling Shinya, would input the code for the third point," Kanaye explained.

"In the meantime, we were enjoying a piece of peace. Or..._you_ all were. I moved, came back. Psh. Mom died...Dad...er...Gen-"

Kouichi interrupted Kako and said quickly, "Mr. Sakai moved back, Hideki tortured us, Kako went ballistic several times throughout the year, and Kouji and I had our fights." He took a moment to breath before continuing, "And I had several spouts with Ogata. I figured out Ms. Kawai knew about the Digital World, suspecting Mr. Aizawa had a part in some of this, discovered Kako knew practically all of them, and was training with Mr. Saito, also Marise, who gave me his diary to read. Odd, but okay."

"I got recruited by Kanaye," Takuya mumbled, glaring at Kanaye who returned an indifferent look.

Izumi frowned. "I really did nothing..."

"I slept! Oh...and I got caught up in several things because of _Ritsuo_." Junpei stuck his tongue out at Ritsuo, who scowled.

"I gave you the tickets!" the second boy snapped.

After a while of thinking, Tomoki exclaimed, "I got Bokomon's book from Yutaka! And Ichiro helped me decipher it."

"Uhh...I..." Shinya frowned and scratched the back of his head. "I...got tied to an armchair, recited all the negative things Takuya said about Kanaye, got to wear Takuya's goggles, got to talk to Lowemon and Duskmon! They're cool. Um...and...I...got to argue with a digimon that was in my mind! But what I _really_ want to do-"

"We don't care," Kouji snapped, glaring as Shinya stuck his tongue out at the bandana boy. "Okay, while you all were off skipping happily in a field of flowers, I actually did some research. Stole Dad's laptop, claimed it for my own, and began searching for Lucemon after hearing Kako's explanation about the shadow system. That, and because of the feathers and that weird dream. Something didn't add up. I mean, how could _Aizawa_, of all people, read my mind? Unless he installed a chip to make me think wh-"

"ON TRACK!" everyone spat.

"Right. I eventually caught onto an email...some...LuceLuceUberLuce. No, not really. I just want to point out it was lame. It-"

"It was Lucemon666. Is it really that bad?" Ai snapped.

"WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU ON?"

"Right...shutting up."

Drawing a breath, Kouji exhaled slowly. "Okay. Anyway, he sent me these really odd e-mails. A whole bunch of sites of Digital History. Prophecies, excerpts...a few names. Pictures...he sent a lot of pictures. Remember that one day in class, Kako? You figured out the third point was in the water. He sent me pictures of the three points, and I plotted it out. It made no sense then, but...remember Cherubimon? That triangle on his forehead formed by the spikes? This area...if you look at it in a certain way, it looks like that."

"Really? Awesome!"

"Um, right. Back on track, that was the end of my spying career. The last e-mail Lucemon sent me told me to go outside. I got stuck with Duskmon controlling me."

"Makes sense," Kouichi muttered.

"_Really_?" Kako asked, brightening.

"No. I'm still confused. I think we're missing a lot more. Somehow, Ichiro and Ryu are brought into this. And Chaos. And Lucemon."

"Ichiro helped me with Bokomon's book!"

"Ryu gave me..." Kouichi's eyes widened. "Uhh..."

"What do you mean 'Uhh...?'" Kako demanded.

"I...actually don't know what he gave me. I mean...it's here, but...I don't think I'm allowed to use it right now," Kouichi admitted sheepishly.

Kako just smiled sweetly. "Please...?"

Reddening, Kouichi looked from one side to the other for help. "Uhmm..."

"Come on, Kouichi," the girl begged.

"Don't." Kanaye opened his eyes, which Kouichi realized had been closed. "You'll know when to use it."

"O-Okay...?" Shrugging, Kouichi continued, "Anyway, Chaos is in control of Lucemon. Has it always been that way?"

"Think of Chaos like a drug," Kanaye said quietly. "Lucemon's addicted, and Chaos won't loosen it's hold. But Chaos is also living. So I suppose it's more seduction than addiction."

Izumi and Kako made a face. "EW."

"Yes, it's perverted, but who cares? Chaos offers power. Lucemon wants power. He offers _himself_ to get that power."

"That defeats the entire purpose," Fujitaka snorted.

"True...but Lucemon doesn't care. He's a disgusting pig."

"KANAYE," Ai growled.

"Again," Kouji snapped, "_whose_ side are you on?"

"S-Still!"

"Shut up!"

Ai pouted and looked away while Fujitaka said, "Kanaye has a point. But he's a well armed hog. He's got a great offense that makes up for his defense, and just think about all the digimon under his command."

"Which would be...?"

"Um...I think he only has the Skullsatamon brothers now," Naoko informed them.

A smirk lit Kouji's face. "Them? Again?"

"Hehe...we've got _two_ sets of brothers ready to whack them back to their senses. Leave them to us!" Takuya exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear.

"What? Us? I have conditions, though!" Shinya snapped.

"What?"

"Do I get to play _your_ hour of videogames for an entire month _along_ with my own?"

"GO GET A BANDANA!"

"HELL NO!" Kouji snapped. "By the way, Takuya said yes."

"Oh, okay!" Shinya said, grinning mischievously himself.

Kouichi let out a small sigh. _Half the puzzle done_. He felt himself fall back just as Kouji sat up. "Alright...Lucemon..._by now_...should be expecting Kanaye turning against him. We've got numbers, but we need strength, too. Kouji was right...we need a strong will..."

"Right. And we do."

"Don't get overconfident, krill. Have you ever read World Domination for Dummies?" Kouichi snapped. "Overconfidence leads to one's undoing."

"HEY!" Kako snapped. "You complained when _I_ was going to buy that book!"

"Well, _duh_. You'd take over the world, ruin it, get overconfident, and _then_ who would clean up your mess?" the boy snapped. "The point is if _we_ get overconfident, there's no chance we can beat even _Lucemon_."

"So what do we do? Act all modest? 'Oh, Lucemon, you're right. I _can't_ move this boulder!'" Fujitaka sneered.

"Shut it," Kouji snapped. "He's saying we can't get overconfident and we can't grovel. We need to believe in ourselves."

"Sadly...easier said than done," Rai murmured quietly.

While everyone stared at her in shock, Izumi demanded, "What do you mean? We've done this plenty times before! Come on, Hideki, you don't honestly-"

Coughing, Hideki looked away. Hearing Izumi's annoyed growl, he sighed and turned to them. "Look, I'll be honest with you all. It _is_ going to be difficult. You can't get overconfident, you can't be modest. You have to believe in _yourself_, and you have to believe in _everyone else_. Heck, you might not need to; maybe believing in yourself is all you need. What _I_ would want, being a digimon shadow for one of you...is for all of you to not only believe in yourself, but each other. Out there, fighting Lucemon, there's no _way_ we can afford to be jealous of Kouichi because he gets to beat up Lucemon, or Tomoki because he's smart. We can't get mad because Kanaye got the last punch. Your hearts have to work together. You think you're up to it, or do we need one last training round?" he asked, meeting every single one of their eyes.

The twins exchanged grins. Sitting up, Kouichi and Kouji said aloud, "Yeah!"

"You two don't count!" Hideki snapped.

"What about us?" Shinya asked, pointing to Takuya, who was currently hovering over the younger Kanbara, trying to get the goggles off the younger boy's head.

Hideki winced as Takuya came crashing down on Shinya. "Umm...we...might need some work there."

-------------------------------------

"So what's this about?" Kouichi asked, looking around at everyone else. Rai was holding Piximon, glaring at the pink digimon as she covered his mouth. _He's going to get it someday_..._I kind of preferred the old Piximon_. Sighing, he turned his attention back to Hideki. "I mean...is sitting in a circle _really_ supposed to help us?"

"Yes, now hush!" Hideki snapped. "I'm trying to think. I mean, look at this! I'm lacking all sorts of equipment. All I brought was rope..." Hideki growled and gazed at the pile of rope behind him. "_Fine_. Who wants to help me chop up rope, first of all? Yeah, twerp two, you should help me with that. Lobomon could use a workout," he muttered, gesturing for Kouji to come over.

"Right." Kouji withdrew his D-Tector. "Spirit Evolution!"

Silence.

"Uhh...spirit...evolution?" the bandana boy tried again, staring at his D-Tector.

"Okay...maybe it's a bit _too_ early. Twerp three is useless...twerp one is out of the question. Can't waste good swords. Twerp four'll just burn them. Twerp five can't do anything. Twerp six and seven...Tomoki can! Korikakumon," Hideki announced, beaming down on Tomoki.

"One question before I do. Who are Twerps four through seven?" Tomoki asked, looking confused.

"I forgot twerp eight. They're the boys Kako knows."

"Why Shinya...? And why didn't you call me a twerp?"

Hideki stopped and looked around, noticing all eyes were on him (especially that of those who he named 'twerps'). "Uh...because Shinya's a brat and you know Ichiro. Okay, keep moving!" he said, waving to Tomoki while trying to look completely calm despite the deathglares from the Kanbara brothers.

"Gotcha."

Five minutes later, Hideki was counting the pieces of rope. "Eight...and one long piece to spare. Neat," he muttered, tossing each small strand of rope in a different direction. "Okay. We're pairing you up. Rai, care to do the honors?"

"Right." Rai tried to hide the thin smile that crept on her lips. "Shinya and Takuya, Ai and Kako, Kouji and Kanaye, Kouichi and Ritsuo, Naoko and Izumi, and finally, Fujitaka and Junpei."

"Wh-what about me...?" Tomoki asked, paling considerably.

"Um...sadly, although I'd _love_ to be your partner...I'm stuck with Piximon. So Hideki will be your partner."

"B-but that defeats the purpose of the exercise!" Hideki screamed.

Snorting, Rai told him, "Nonsense. You could do with a little exercise yourself."

A sharp exhale from Hideki silenced everyone. "Okay. Fine. We're going to play a certain three-legged game. Lame, I know, but think about it. This isn't fun anymore, kids. This is training. How many people can honestly _run_ a three-legged race? And this is what we're aiming for...er...except Rai. I'm sure she and Piximon can laugh Lucemon to death."

"Still not getting the point here," Fujitaka grumbled.

"Shut up, then. We're going to put an even _bigger_ twist to this." Hideki grinned. "One partner faces one way, and the other faces the other way. Now tie the legs next to each other together with the rope, and _tight_."

"What are you? Some trainer!" Kouji snapped, reaching out his hand to grab a hold of the rope. "Honestly, even-" He stopped, seeing Kanaye's hand on the other end. "No way. You'll knot it up."

"I'm sure you've got better knots in mind," Kanaye countered.

"I DEMAND A CHANGE IN PARTNERS! MS. KAWAI! LET PIXIMON BE MY PARTNER!"

"Hell no, twerp two," Hideki snapped. "There's a _point_ to this. You're with the person you're least compatible with...or...you should be."

"What about Naoko and Izumi?" Takuya snapped.

Hideki looked from Rai to the goggle boy. "Um...Rai...Rai did it!" he blurted, paying attention to the rope and tying it around his leg and Tomoki's. "Okay, everyone got the rope tied?"

"NO," came the shouts of almost everyone.

"Um, Hideki, is it supposed to be this easy?" Kouichi asked as he and Ritsuo walked over, Kouichi facing away from Hideki while Ritsuo faced the young man. "Because...honestly..."

Reddening, Hideki muttered, "Y-you two are just special. And lucky. And semi-compatible." He ignored Tomoki's pained howl and continued wrapping the rope around their legs again and again.

"Then...why...?"

"STOP ASKING QUESTIONS!"

"I'll answer that," Rai offered. Clearing her throat, she mumbled in a quiet voice, "Um...although you and Fujitaka would have been the perfect contrast...Ritsuo and Junpei couldn't go together because they're pretty close. So...you have to settle for this."

"Cool. How's it going, Junpei?" Ritsuo shouted, grinning.

Junpei returned the grin and a thumbs up. He and Fujitaka slowly made their way over to Kouichi and Ritsuo until Fujitaka, who had been walking backwards, tripped over a rock.

Taken aback, Ritsuo coughed. "Okay...I guess this'll take a while."

-------------------------------------

"Alright everyone? Good!" Hideki said, trying to sound cheerful. The slight hint of distress in his voice was enough to voice everyone else's. "Now to the next part..."

"_Next part?_" Shinya and Takuya snapped, both making their way to Hideki somewhat awkwardly. "_What do you mean next part?_"

"H-Hey...it's working already...!" Hideki laughed, holding up both hands in defense. Then, in a high squeaky voice: "Rai, help me!"

"My goodness, I though he already _went_ through this," Kako muttered, shaking her head and letting out an exasperated sigh.

Kouichi watched the Kanbaras hop on their unattached legs, hoping to catch up to Hideki and Tomoki (both of whom were running as fast as their three legs could take them). As somehow, their hopping became more random than unified, and both brothers fell, Kouichi looked at Rai and asked, "How long do we have?"

Silence descended, quick and swift to leave as it came. "Th-the thing is, Kouichi," Rai mumbled, lowering her gaze to the floor. "I know...we had hoped...to piece that puzzle together properly. You're still missing a few pieces _we_ can't fill in..."

The boy frowned. "Wh-what?"

Rai turned away as she told him in a firm voice, "Until sundown." After a pause, she added, "I'm sorry, Kouichi."

Shock was visible in Kouichi's eyes. Again, he repeated, "What?"

"Then what are we doing wasting time?" Tomoki snapped, already working on the ties that bound him to Hideki. "We should be going! We should be-"

"No," Kouji snapped quickly, swinging a hand outward. "Listen, all of you, as much as I hate to say this while attached to my dreaded enemy, Hideki has a point. To walk like this, as _ridiculously idiotic and stupid and-_"

"TO THE POINT!" someone shouted out (and Kouji suspected it to be Kako attempting to mask her voice).

"Right. Let us-er, me...get to the point. To walk like this is training our minds to work _together_. If we can work with the biggest imbeci-"

"Kouji," Junpei groaned.

"Sorry! If we can work with someone like the person we're next to, we can work with anyone! Got it?" Kouji said this all very fast, eyes closed, praying he wouldn't drift off on another tangent. He opened one eye and drew a breath. "Uh...yeah..."

"Then...let's give it our all...at least _five_ more minutes?" Kouichi said, looking around. "I know, it sucks. There's no food...I'm more hungry than I've been in my entire life, and the forced insomnia kills, too. But what was the preparation worth if we're going to just slack for the final training? Nothing. It won't _hurt_ if we at least _try_ for a minute." He drew a breath and then added, "Please...?"

Kanaye snorted. Seconds later, he murmured, "Kimura has a point. We're in, whether Fujitaka and Ritsuo...or _Ai_ like it or not. And as to why I'm not mentioning Naoko..._she_ doesn't complain as much as you three." Naoko just smiled.

"Well, the Kanbaras are in! Obviously," Shinya said, grinning widely.

After glaring at his brother awhile (with great difficulty), Takuya nodded. "Yeah, krill has a point. I'll be doubly in if you guys are...?" He smiled, meeting the affirmative nods of Izumi, Junpei and Tomoki. "Alright, the Kanbaras are quadruply in!"

"H-hey...why'd _you_ call me krill?" Shinya suddenly asked.

Takuya froze. "Uhh..." he stuttered, unsure of what he said, and even _more_ unsure of what his mistake was.

Folding his arms and leaning back to meet his brother's eyes, Shinya said, "I don't like it when you call me krill. Stick with shrimp."

"FINE. SHRIMP."

"OLD MAN!"

"YOU LITTLE-"

Takuya, in an attempt to strangle his brother, fell onto his side, dragging Shinya with him. "You little-"

"Hm." Kouji glanced at his brother. A quick nod was exchanged, and Kouichi looked at Kako and frowned. "Ah...about this whole thing...we're leaving you out."

For the first few seconds, Kako was quiet. Then, her eyes widening in rage, she demanded, "WHAT?" Grabbing Ai's arm, she stormed over to Kouichi, not caring that Ai was practically being dragged along. "What do you _mean_ you're leaving me out? That's not-you can't!"

"No, no...he has a point," Hideki shouted, marching around the cave with Tomoki. "You're too weak."

"YOU JERK! SOME BROTHER YOU ARE! I'M TELLING RAI!"

"Ouch," Ritsuo and Kouichi muttered under their breath.

"YEAH? TELLING HER WHAT?" Hideki snapped, changing the course of direction to Kako. Luckily, Tomoki had forseen that and was quick to change course as well.

"TELLING HER ABOUT THAT LITTLE-"

"NO!" Hideki suddenly reddened. Stepping forward, he managed to place the weight on his free foot and lean over cover his sister's mouth. "Don't you _dare_."

Kako just smiled a little too smugly. "Okay! So long as I can go!"

"Uh...how about I give you some pictures?"

"What pictures?"

"Of...um...him?"

"Huh? OH...what? YOU STALKER!"

"Aw, but you two look _so_ cute together!"

"I agree!" Kouji shouted.

"I double that!" Takuya added. After a pause, he added, "Whatever you're talking about."

Shinya grinned. "In that case, I quadruple it!" he declared.

"I septuple it!" Takuya snapped.

"Uh...I..."

"Yeah!" Hideki just grinned as he continued, "Isn't Ryuusei perfect for you?" He rose an eyebrow and continued to grin at Kako.

Staring up at him with newfound confusion, all Kako could say was, "What?" A few seconds later, more words popped into her mouth. "W-wait...you're talking about RYUUSEI? EW! Hideki, that's _disgusting_!" she screamed, slapping him away. "You sicko! You pervert! You _idiot_!"

"Ow! No! Stop! Ai, why won't you make her stop! Ow! You two are _evil_!" With Tomoki's help, Hideki managed to get a head start in getting away with Ai and Kako slowly, but surely, gaining on them.

"Everyone seems to be getting better at this," Kouichi murmured, sounding relieved.

Ritsuo just chuckled. "Keep in mind, Kimura, we've only got until sundown. Only five minutes of fun. We've got to give _that_ our all, too, you know."

"Fun..." Kouichi collapsed onto his free knee. "Yeah...fun..."

Childhood memories, laughter, and noise...for once, Kouichi embraced them all greater than he ever had before. The nostalgia sent his mind adrift as his eyes shut, while he remained kneeled like that, the pads of his fingertips just touching the floor. His sight was an endless void of black, his hearing a mess of noise. _I promised_, he thought, opening his eyes. _I promised_, _and I'll keep that promise_. _Please_, _please let me keep them safe_. _No matter what_.

He only hoped it was possible.

-------------------------------------

The man paused, looking behind his right shoulder absentmindedly. Pulling the cap off his head and throwing it to the side, he sighed, watching as it fell uncerimoniously to the dirt floor.

He stopped and looked ahead of him, angling his head to the left sharply. Quickly, he dropped down onto a knee, head bowed.

Silence, sweet silence he had come to understand, was all that met his ears. He nodded, understanding every second of it.

"I understand," he murmured, his voice going from deep to almost child-like. "They will soon be here, of course. Even _they_ would not be stupid as to linger around. By that time, of course, we will be finished." His head tilted up, and a sickeningly smug smile lifted the corner of his lips as he whispered aloud, "Chaos..."

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Ahem. Yes, a lot of pointless idiocy (ONE REAL BIG FAT FILLER CHAPTER). Sorry. I said three chapters last time, but...I really don't know. It's an estimate. If I could get rid of the stupid parts...but I wanted to review the story. And you know, in all honesty, it was more of a 'keep on track' for me than the characters.

Whew. Finally caught up on answering reviews…(sort of). Thank you for the review- **GemmaniGirl**

Review or PM or Flame.


	46. Vortex

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Vortex

-------------------------------------

"We're ready!" Hideki exclaimed, happily undoing the knot of rope around his leg and Tomoki's. "Uh...what gives? It won't give!"

"Haha, sucker!" Sticking out his tongue, Kouji started to undo his own knot. "Watch a master." He frowned, tugging and pulling on the rope fruitlessly.

Hideki snorted and dug into his pocket, producing a pocket knife. Sawing through, he sneered, "Yeah, why don't you?"

"I'm gonna-"

"Hurry up," Kanaye snapped, hitting Kouji's head. "You're wasting our time."

Kouji scowled as he stood up straight. "Yeah...?" Pointing to the knot, he snapped, "You do it!"

"Done." Kanaye leaned down and undid the knot in a matter of seconds. Kouji could only watch in envy as the rope pooled down past their shoes. "Let's go."

"Yup, yup!" Everyone turned to Piximon, who was flying around Kako. "But first we need to find the entrance to Lucemon's room..." At this point, all eyes turned to Ai until Piximon concluded his earlier train of thought with a happy, "But no one here knows where it is!"

"Then we'll break the place down," Kanaye snapped, gazing around the room. "These walls won't hold after a couple of-"

"Woah, woah," Junpei said. He held up his hands. "I don't think that's what we're supposed to do. In these situations, there's _always_ another way."

"Right," Izumi agreed.

Takuya nodded and Shinya said, "We just have to find it!"

Naoko glanced at everyone. Seeing they were all standing still, she suggested, "Let's start looking...?"

-------------------------------------

"Nothing in this corner."

"Can't find anything!"

"Piximon, get _off_ of me!"

"Yeesh, he isn't as light as he looks..."

"Stop looking and _help_, Hideki!"

"No, no, that's okay. I'm enjoying this. Anyone got popcorn?" Hideki shouted, watching as Piximon continued bouncing up and down on Kako's stomach.

Sighing, Kouichi kneeled down beside the girl and picked the digimon up, gazing at it curiously. "There's a big difference between this Piximon and our old one."

Piximon pouted. "You make us sound like toys," the digimon grumbled, releasing himself from Kouichi's grasp by rapping on the boy's knuckles with his staff. "We're better than that." He fluttered up higher out of the reach of anyone and continued looking for an entrance.

Kouichi watched as Kako rose to her feet, grumbling and brushing herself off. "Stupid little..." She sighed and gazed at the ground. "Why do I bother?" she moaned to herself, kicking a small rock beside her shoe. "It's like-"

"What the-"

Their eyes widened, turning to the source of the sudden rumbling that had started. Across from the entrance of what they had considered to be a dead end was nothing.

Kako was grasping onto Kouichi's arm tightly. Pointing to the newly formed tunnel, she asked in a shaky voice, "Wh-what happened to the rock that was supposed to be there?"

"You're hurting my arm..."

"What does that have to do with the rock?" she asked, her voice rising a bit too high until she squeaked.

"Kako, calm down! Let's get going. We've only got so much time," Kouji snapped, running through.

"Uh-Wait up!" Kouichi yelled, dashing after his brother.

Eyes wide, Kako watched as the two ran off. "No one answered my question..."

"Just get _going_," Hideki snapped, pushing his sister forward. "Come on, people. We don't have all day...

-------------------------------------

'_You're letting them treat you like a rug_.'

'_How dense are you?_'

'_That fear_..._that_..._one would leave the other_.'

'_I_..._lost myself_.'

'_But_..._but that means leaving everything behind_.'

'_I'm here to destroy you_.'

'_You're like the rest of them_.'

'_In fact, does everyone matter that much to you? I'm amazed_.'

'_That innocence is the very reason you are so hated_.'

'_Here is the key_, _now look through the bandanas._'

'_Kid, that was no fluke_.'

'_It's because you actually bother to pay attention and learn_.'

'_Some people just won't change_.'

'_This entire plot is using you, and you continue with it as if everything is fine!_'

'_Yes or no, Kimura_. _A simple question_.'

'_She'll understand_.'

'_You see, I'm not meant to be_.'

'_You're still hurting_...'

'_Your destiny may be determined by the simplest of actions_.'

'_I don't need_..._your help!_'

'_There is always a way out_.'

'_They're beyond great_. _They're the world itself_.'

'_Not many people realize Kanaye has that weakness_.'

'_You won't initiate a fight for no reason_. _I can tell_.'

'_I'm trying to _help_ you!_'

'_I want you both to promise me that you won't do anything that could put your life in danger_.'

'_Promises are meant to be kept..._'

Kouichi opened his eyes, trying to blink away the blurry image. "Promises," he croaked. His eyes focused slowly, and feeling returned to his body, bringing with it the pain that had neglected to reveal itself in his comatose state. A groan escaped him as he tried to sit up, but he succeeded, taking a weary look around. His right hand floated up to his forehead as he murmured to himself, "What was...that...all about?"

"Finally...you're up," a relieved voice murmured.

He looked around, startled. "Wh-where are you...?"

Someone gasped. He could feel someone place their hand on his arm and murmur so close to his ear, "Kouichi...? Are you okay?"

His eyes slipped shut. _What's happening to me...?_ "I'm fine," he told himself. "I'm fine. I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine." Kouichi told this to himself again and again until he felt safe enough to open his eyes. Instead of the dark world that had been shown to him before, he saw they were in a cave, two torches being the dim lighting.

"He's up!"

Kouichi jumped and looked to his left, seeing Shinya there, beaming at him. "Hey, Kouichi!" the boy exclaimed, standing up straight and waving. "You were out for a while!"

"How...long...?"

Silence.

Somehow, Kouichi made it to his feet. His hands moved of their own accord, burying themselves in the soft cloth of Shinya's lapels. "_How long_?" he asked again, voice low and threatening.

"Ten minutes," Kako answered from behind him. "Kouichi, put him down," she added, seeing he was still holding onto Shinya.

"Sorry." Sighing, he released hold of Shinya and ruffled the boy's hair. "Didn't mean it...like...that."

"Don't worry! Kako told me you're just stressed out!"

"I'm _not_ stressed out!" Kouichi snapped. He was about to say more, but feeling a hand on his shoulder, he stopped, eyes wide. That _feeling_. _What is it?_ His head turned slightly, seeing Kouji staring stolidly at him. Nodding, the older twin gazed around. "Where's everyone else?"

"About that..." Kako started, immediately falling silent.

"Not sure," Kouji said quickly.

Almost automatically after he said this, Kouichi snapped, "Liar." He turned to Kako. "The truth...?"

The girl gritted her teeth. "They..." She kicked the ground and yelled, "They went ahead, okay?" Still seething, she looked away from Kouichi and continued, "And they decided to weed out the weaklings."

"Weaklings...?" Kouichi repeated, frowning. "But Kouji-"

"Lobomon. Undeveloped," Kouji said, practically spitting out the words.

The frown deepened. "Shinya. Shinya _isn't_ weak."

"That was Takuya's decision alone."

Shinya gave a small smile as he tried so hard to reassure Kouichi, telling him, "It's not that bad. I'm kind of scared."

"Lies." Kouichi pointed to the boy's head. "Takuya bribed you with his goggles."

"A bribe that Shinya didn't _take_," Kako muttered.

"Hideki's weaker than all of you _individually_. Why is _he_ going ahead?"

Silence.

"This wasn't _our_ decision, Kouichi," Kouji murmured, looking away.

This time, Kako met his eyes. "Kanaye...um..."

"_KANAYE'S DECISION_?" Kouichi thundered, clenching his fists.

Piximon flew around the three guilty looking humans, happily humming to himself. The three gazed at the ground, looking glum and, in the case of Kako and Kouji, angry.

Kouichi drew a steady breath, letting it out slowly. "Alright."

They looked up and Piximon stopped, instead floating gently to the ground. The pink digimon turned around and gazed curiously at Kouichi.

"This is what we're going to do. Shinya and Kouji, we're going to catch up to them, even if I have to be a pack mule again. Kako..." He stopped, seeing her eyes narrow into a murderous gaze. "You...Piximon. Piximon, you'll be in charge of Kako. If anything happens, it'll be up to you to save the day. I want you to find some place safe, and if you can, get away from here. I _know_," Kouichi said firmly, seeing Kako's mouth open in protest, "that this is your fight too, Kako, but Lucemon's no joke _or_ a pushover. You get hurt, and Hideki'll turn on me first thing."

"We're being selfish," Kouji said quietly.

"Yeah, se-we?" Kouichi stared at his brother and blinked. Slowly, he looked back at Kako. "Y-yeah...we're being selfish," he murmured, nodding in understanding.

Kako gazed at the ground glumly. "Fine."

"Thanks," Kouichi murmured in relief, looking around. "So which way did they go?"

Kouji looked at Shinya expectantly. The younger boy rose an eyebrow and shrugged. "Here...follow me," he murmured, breaking into a run with Kouichi at his heels.

The girl tilted her head to the side as she knelt down to pick up Piximon. "What are _you_ up to, bandana head?" she asked, smiling slightly.

He returned her smile with one of his own, a slightly mischievous look in his eye. "I was serious...at the dance. If he ever _does_ hurt you, in any way..." Kouji looked away, but Kako could tell he was still smiling. "Come to me...would you?"

"Of course, Kouji," she murmured, standing up and tightening her grip on the wriggling Piximon. She took a few tentative steps in his direction. "Hey...be careful out there, would you? All of you."

"I'll make sure he comes back alive," Kouji laughed, turning back around. "Then...keep going forward, okay?"

She nodded.

The bandana boy paused, unable to move. "You...be careful too, okay?"

"Go," Kako murmured, pushing him towards the direction Shinya and Kouichi had gone in. "They're waiting, you know."

"Yeah..." Kouji turned around, ready to sprint.

"H-hey, Kouji?"

He looked over his shoulder. _Is that...?_

"Don't...tell...Kouichi I'm crying, okay? I told...I...I promised myself...I wouldn't cry..." She rubbed her eyes and smiled at him. "Make sure to win."

Forcing one last, final smile, Kouji turned around and ran.

-------------------------------------

"That's it, I'm digivolving," Kouichi muttered, stopping on the spot and whipping out his D-Tector.

Shinya came to a halt too, casting a glance over his shoulder. "But...Kouji," he began. "He's-"

"Right here. You miss me?" Kouji ran up to them, stopping only when he was just feet behind his brother. "Weren't thinking of leaving me behind, were you?"

"She...hates me, doesn't she?" the older twin asked in a quiet voice. When Kouji just stared in shock, Kouichi shook his head and quickly digivolved into KaiserLeomon, cutting all talk short. "Hop on," he ordered, seeing all Shinya and Kouji were capable of was staring.

They quickly clambered on, and KaiserLeomon was off.

-------------------------------------

"Now where?"

Kanaye gazed at the two paths silently before pointing left. "That one."

"HOLD IT!"

Everyone whirled around at the sound of the childish voice, groaning when they saw Shinya and Kouji on KaiserLeomon's back, quickly approaching.

Hideki scowled. Once they came closer and Kouichi dedigivolved, he inquired, "Didn't we get rid of you misfits?"

"The only misfit here would be you, Mr. Neemon," Kouichi said calmly.

"TWERP."

"Old man."

"You little-"

Kouichi cleared his throat. "At least be glad I didn't bring Kako." _Right now_, _I kind of wish I did_. _Why am I feeling so nervous...?_ A shiver ran down his spine, though he tried to ignore it. "Let's go."

"That's...to the point," Takuya murmured as they continued down the left path. "What's with you, Kouichi?"

"Nothing," the boy lied, trying to convince himself it was true. _You're fine_, he told himself. _You're just being a bit too paranoid_. Still, with each step he took, Kouichi felt more and more unsure of himself. _What's wrong_...?

"Kouichi!" Kouji snapped, glaring daggers at his brother. "What's wrong?"

The older twin frowned to himself. "I...was wondering that myself."

"Gee, that works well, doesn't it?" Kouji muttered sarcastically. "Alright, listen up, all of you..."

Everyone was too preoccupied with their own mini-conversations to pay attention to Kouji. Furiously, Kouji hollered, "Shut up!" Silence ensued, but everyone kept walking, and he continued in a normal voice, "We've all got to be careful out there...and I mean it. Think of it this way: If one of us dies, we've failed. Got it?"

Slowly, they began to nod. Kouji felt a tinge of hope lift him off his feet.

"Why are you all so slow?" Kouichi suddenly demanded, breaking into a run. _Tell me, just tell me_..._that Kako will be safe_. _Please_.

Kouichi ran towards the dim light ahead, fully aware of the figure that was standing in the middle of their final destination. Hearing the footfalls of everyone else behind him, he hastened his pace until he reached the entrance and stopped there. His eyes narrowed on the man in the middle of the room. Kouichi didn't even bother to acknowledge the rich and unusual surroundings.

Instead, the boy murmured quietly, "So...I was right."

Lucemon's human shadow stood in front of him, a smirk visible on his face. "Welcome, Kimura...ah...I mean, Kouichi," he murmured, motioning to a chair that appeared in front of Kouichi. "Won't you have a seat...?"

"No thanks," Kouichi spat, kicking the chair aside. "I knew it."

The other caught up, he knew; their heavy breathing was enough evidence. Kouichi's eyes slipped shut.

"Kimura," Kanaye murmured, walking up to the boy. "He's mine."

Kouichi's eyes opened. "On one condition," he said, bringing out his D-Tector.

"What is it?"

"Stop calling me 'Kimura.'" Kouichi tossed him the sword. "It's Kouichi."

Kanaye just smirked as he caught the sword. "Fine..._Kouichi_." He turned to Ai. "Well? Which side will you pick?"

The girl gazed at him coldly before folding her arms. Exhaling sharply, she told him calmly, "Don't you think I would have complained a lot more by now if I was unhappy?"

The smirk widened. Kanaye turned to Lucemon's shadow. "_That's_ more like it," he muttered, swinging the sword forth. "So, _Lucemon_..."

Kouji and Takuya pushed their way from the back to the front. In unison, they both shouted, "That's-"

"Yep. Meet Lucemon's shadow..." Kouichi gazed at the man.

"But that's..." Izumi started.

"That's...?" Tomoki and Junpei exchanged glances. "Are we supposed to know?" Junpei asked.

Shinya, grinning, bounced up and down. "I know! I know, I know!" he shouted, raising his hand, all the while still jumping. "This guy is...Ogata!"

"Eeeeeeewwww," Takuya and Kouji said, sticking their tongue out. "Bad joke!"

In a second, Kanaye was in the air, ready to strike. "That doesn't matter! Less talk!" he yelled, bringing his sword down on the smirking form of Ogata.

There was a scream. Smoke filled the room, appearing from nowhere. Someone was lying on the floor and someone was standing. Kouichi tried to catch a glimpse of who was who, but the figures were too blurry. _Please_, he prayed, _tell me Kanaye_...

The smoke cleared.

Kanaye lay on the ground, the black sword spinning away from him. Ogata stood, still smirking, not a scratch on him.

"Well?" he finally said, a sick smile creeping onto his lips. "Who's next?"

-------------------------------------

Kako pushed off the rock, gasping for air. _When's this gonna end...?_ Suppressing a groan, she continued up, glaring at the stone walls as if they were her enemy.

Her thoughts drifted back to Piximon, who was soundly asleep in her arms. "Some savior. Oh well...I guess even _he_ needs a break," she mumbled, stopping and falling back against the wall so she could safely slide to meet the cold dirt floor.

_They're being selfish_..._but why can't I be selfish? I want to know what they're doing_, the girl thought, resting her head back and shutting her eyes. _What if he's hurt_...? _I'm scared_. _Piximon isn't enough to make me feel brave_. Her grip around the pink digimon tightened.

"I want...to get out of here," Kako cried, drawing her knees in. "Come on, Piximon, why won't you save me! I'm scared! I don't care! I just want to get this over with! I want to see them again!" She drew a breath, opened her eyes, and cried out immediately after, seeing no one was there to listen to her. "I don't...want to be a crybaby again," Kako mumbled. "Piximon..." A soft sigh pushed past her lips, and her eyes shut once more. _Piximon_...

"I guess it isn't so bad." Her hold loosened. "I mean, he could have left me here by myself, right, Piximon?" Kako whispered, opening her eyes and gazing fondly at the sleeping digimon. _Is that all he does? Sleep_...

Slowly, she rose to her feet. "I wanna sleep too, you know," she muttered, pouting momentarily as she took a step forward. With a sigh, Kako turned around. "But I just can't leave yet." She gazed at the endless tunnel of dark before her with a sigh. "Either way, it's dark. I came this far, right...? I can't turn back now." A frown. "Alright, then. Sorry, Kouichi. I guess I have to go to Kouji's advice."

A smile appeared on her face again, faster than the frown had come. Kako turned back around and broke into a run, doing her best to keep up the pace. "Alright, Piximon!" the girl announced aloud, "Let's find some place where we can make sure they're safe!"

In her arms, Piximon stirred, opening one eye slightly and throwing a tired glare at the moving ground. _This girl is insane_...

-------------------------------------

"GROUP HUDDLE!" Hideki hollered, motioning for everyone to fall back. "One second, will you, weirdo?"

The man just smiled and sat down in a chair. "Of course, of course...take your time, fools," he said, chuckling slightly.

"Ogata...tch...I should have known," Rai muttered, glaring at the man. "Such a pain..."

Hideki gasped. "You mean _this_ idiot's been giving you trouble?"

"Nothing I can't take care of."

He snorted and returned his attention to the children. _There goes _that_ plot_. "Alright. Who's expendable?"

"_Expendable? NONE OF US ARE EXPENDABLE!_" Izumi screeched, pointing past Hideki to Ogata. "Least of all, Kanaye." Izumi paused and turned to Kouichi, practically glaring at him as she demanded, "Now, Kouichi, show us your skills and beat him up!"

"What?" Kouichi exclaimed. "Why me?" the boy demanded in a hiss.

Izumi stood there, mouth open, but the words refused to come out. Finally, she clamped her mouth shut and turned away from the rest of them. "_Because_," she murmured, "we know you can do it.

The younger twin hit the back of his brother's head. "Yeah. And if you don't, I will," Kouji added, smirking. "Come on, what can an old man do against all of us? Beat us with his cane?"

"As a matter of fact..."

They all froze, turning their heads to discover Ogata was right behind Hideki.

"Something like that."

"Dammit," Kouji muttered, whipping out his D-Tector and bringing out his sword. "Twerp three thousand! Move it!" he snapped, pushing Hideki out of the way and blocking the cane that came down. "Yes, do _humor_ us to death, Ogata..." The boy pushed him back. "Kouichi!"

The older twin made a dash for his sword, trying not to scream as he tripped over a rock and flew forward, just in front of the blade. Kouichi made a reach for it-and grabbed it, too, just as the ground beneath him gave way and he slipped away, falling deeper into the darkness than he ever had before.

Funny thing was, he could have sworn everyone else fell in after him.

-------------------------------------

"Kouichi!" Kouji yelled, sitting up and looking around the room. He frowned, discovering himself in his bed. _What's this?_ "Uh...anyone?" _Was this all a dream...? There's no sword...no D-Tector...and why am I wearing pajamas?_ Disturbed by the sudden change in outfit, Kouji slipped out of bed and tiptoed towards the door.

As soon as he placed his hand on the doorknob, curiosity and reason commenced in a vicious battle. Eventually, reason lost to curiosity, as did fortune somewhere along the line. Shrugging, Kouji opened the door. Consequently, he stared wide-eyed at a blasting vortex of nothingness, pink and purple in color to boot.

_Hey...if I wasn't sure that Lucemon's out to kill us now, I'd say that's Kouichi's room_, the boy thought, chuckling at the remembrance of the time he had painted Kouichi's room. Ah, the days didn't seem that long ago...

Kouji shut the door, along with his eyes, sighing as he did. After a moment of silence, he opened his eyes and made his way back to the bed with a shrug. "Well," the bandana boy decided, "at least I'll die happily in my bed if I do."

-------------------------------------

"Well, at least I'll die happily in my bed...if I do," Takuya observed, gazing at his bed skeptically. "But...why are you here, Shinya?" he demanded of his brother.

Shinya stared at his brother's bed, frowning. "That's funny. I remember your bed being bigger..."

Scowling, Takuya screamed, "WHY ARE YOU HERE? I WANT IZUMI HERE, NOT YOU!"

The younger Kanbara stuck out his tongue. Without saying anymore, he plopped down on the bed. "See, after you let me sleep in your bed, I've decided it's more comfortable than my own. So this'll be _my_ deathbed."

"Heck no! I'm going to die-wait...what am I talking about? You can die as many times as you want, but I'm not dying until I get what I want!" Takuya muttered, making a face.

"What's that?"

"Uhh..." A frown appeared on Takuya's face. "Let me think..."

"I just want to know what's going on here. But don't you think it's kind of funny that we're both here and no one else is?"

Takuya just snorted. "So? I bet that Kouji and Kouichi are together." Under his breath, he added, "And I'd do pretty much anything to trade with either of them."

"Heard that."

"Darn."

Suddenly, Shinya burst out laughing. Seeing Takuya staring at him quizzically, the younger boy explained, "I was just thinking...wouldn't it be funny if Lucemon somehow managed to place us in illusions? And we end up where we wanna die?"

"You mean you _really_ want to die in _my_ bed?"

"Yup."

"Go away!" Takuya snapped, making another face. "Come on, let's go to _your_ room, then," he muttered, walking over to the door and twisting the doorknob open. "And-" He stopped.

"COOL! VORTEX! Let's go through, Takuya! I wanna see where Tomoki and the others are!" Shinya yelled, jumping off the bed and running over to his brother.

Takuya's eyes narrowed on the vortex. "Shinya...what if we end up _dying_ instead...?" the goggle boy questioned, not meeting eyes with his brother.

Beside him, Shinya just shrugged. He pushed past his brother and took a step closer to the vortex. "Well, then we die. But we can't just be stuck here forever, right? Besides, I plan to die in _your_ bed of _old age_," Shinya explained.

With a grin, Takuya pushed his brother into the vortex, praying they had made the right choice. _But Shinya_..._about the old age_, the older Kanbara thought, shutting his eyes and diving in after Shinya. _I'm totally with you there_.

-------------------------------------

"You _have_ to be kidding me..." Izumi muttered, gazing around. _Of all people, why _her? With a sigh, she turned to Naoko. _At least she's here_. "Looks like the girls ended up together," she mumbled.

Naoko offered a smile. "Hey, at least we aren't alone."

"I hope Kanaye is," Ai muttered, folding her arms and looking away irritably.

Izumi shot her a glare. Placing her hands on her hips, she snapped, "You know you're lucky to even be _alive_. And why did we end up in a _mall_?"

Ai just shrugged. "But I'd rather die in a mall than at home."

"Uh...me too."

"You guys, too?" Naoko asked, frowning. "Actually, I'd prefer dying at home, but I don't want to die alone." She rose a finger. "I want to die in the cold."

"WHAT?" the other two girls exclaimed, obviously horrified.

"Enough about that. Who wanted to die in the jewelry shop?"

Ai rose her hands up in the air. "Do you think we can try them on?" she asked, giggling.

She received glares from Naoko and Izumi, both of who were heading to the door. "You know," Naoko commented, "you can be a lot like Kako sometimes."

Looking miffed as she followed them, Ai declared, "_Don't_ compare me to her! Have you seen the way she dresses?"

A snort escaped Izumi as did her retort before she could stop it. "You mean like a _girl_ instead of a-"

"WAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"

"PERVERT!"

"I'M SORRY! OW!"

"STOP YELLING!"

"HAHA!"

"Shinya?" Izumi murmured, looking at the door, startled. "TAKUYA?" Eyes wide, she ran over to the goggle boy and helped him off the floor. "You two-"

"No time!" Takuya snapped. "Listen, apparently-or...Shinya, you explain, Mr. Brain."

"But I wanna be Mr. Goggles!" the younger Kanbara whined.

"Shut up and explain."

Shinya stuck his tongue out at his brother. Clearing his throat, he turned back to the girls and began in a murmur, "You see, we've figured that Lucemon's somehow put us in illusions. We're in the place where we want to die. And the vortex thing outside...if we wish hard enough to be together, I think we can find the others."

Wide-eyed, Ai stared at the young boy. Shaking her head and shutting her eyes, she asked, "We want to risk it? Everything? On some _theory_?"

"Uh...isn't that what you guys usually do?" Shinya questioned.

Naoko was the one who nodded and told him, "Well...yeah, but Ai's just the odd one out. Let's go. But first: who do we want to find next?"

"THE SW-I mean...Kouichi!"

"Shouldn't we find Kanaye?"

"I think we ought to find Rai and Hideki."

"Maybe Tomoki? Or Junpei?"

"Bah...Fujitaka and Ritsuo will be fine."

"But...I really think-"

"Above all..."

"Kouji," everyone chorused, eyes narrowed on the door.

After a pause, Takuya chuckled. "Yeah...who knows what trouble he's in now?"

-------------------------------------

If Kouji was in trouble, Kouichi was in a life or death situation.

Actually, he _was_ in a life or death situation.

"Uh...how is hanging me over an endless pit that supposedly has lava at the bottom in _any_ way amusing?" Kouichi demanded, gazing around. _Actually, _is _there lava down there? This isn't how I planned to die_...

_But it isn't how you plan to die_. _This is how you live_.

"Great. I'm hearing voices again!" the boy muttered in disgust, wishing more than anything that he could break free and stretch his arms and legs without falling.

_Stupid boy_. _Why don't you _ever _listen to me_?

_If I knew who the hell you were_, Kouichi thought, scowling. "Well _sorry_, Mr. High-and-Mighty. It's-"

_Shut up_.

"THAT'S IT!" Kouichi snapped, twisting and turning and yanking on the metal clamps around his wrist and ankles. "STUPID LUCEMON! WHAT KIND OF SICK JOKE IS THIS?"

_I'll _kill _you if you start yelling_.

Silence. Kouichi stopped struggling. _Just die_. "Don't tell me that's you," he muttered.

_Too bad_. A pause. _It's not like I really want to do this_.

A sigh escaped Kouichi as he kept still in his confinement. "So Duskmon, you a fixated ghost or something?"

_Of course not, you stupid fool_.

_Duskmon, that's enough_, Lowemon snapped.

_Stay out of this_. _You can have your fun with Chaos_. _But _I _get Lucemon_.

_Duskmon_!

"It's okay, Lowemon. Just let him." Kouichi drew a breath. "...if you hurt anyone _but_ Lucemon..."

_I'm not stupid_. _Are you sure you're ready_?

Kouichi nodded. _Any time now_.

_Then let us begin_.

A swirl of emotions seemed to surround Kouichi as he felt the shackles come undone. Breathlessly, he watched as a transparent Duskmon disappeared within him. He swallowed, suddenly feeling sick as he realized he was falling. _Please tell me this will be over soon_, he thought, allowing his mind to fall back and give way to Duskmon.

-------------------------------------

"Why the hell would Kouji want to die in _Junpei's_ room, Takuya?" Ai snapped, glaring daggers his way.

"YOU'RE HERE!" Junpei screamed, jumping to his feet. Shakily, he pointed to the vortex that was shown as the door was open. "B-But that thing...!"

Behind him, Fujitaka let out an irked sigh. _That big baby_, the boy thought, rising to his feet. "I _tried_ explaining that it works the same way as Sakakkumon...but they're so..."

Ritsuo stuck his tongue out. "I _reserve_ the right to be childish, thank you!" he snapped. Shakily, he rose to his feet, laughing nervously. "So...how many more to find?"

"This is wrong," Izumi muttered, disgusted. "A scavenger hunt. Lucemon considers this a game...?"

The goggle boy made a face. "Let's just go...gah...next stop..." He trailed off and looked at his brother.

"The swo-Koui-I mean...Kouji!" Shinya yelled, jumping straight into the vortex.

-------------------------------------

"You've _got_ to be kidding me..." Takuya twitched, seeing the sight before him.

"Yeah, I know, not Kouji..._again_," Shinya muttered, stomping on the ground once.

All three girls and Fujitaka sighed. Junpei directed Shinya's head towards the scene. "Kid, _this_ is what your brother is talking about."

"OH...Hi Tomoki!" Shinya yelled, waving to the boy who was squeezed the life out of Kanaye's hand.

"Great...now tell him to let _go_. He's been doing this for five minutes _straight_," Kanaye snapped, glaring at a frozen Tomoki who was crushing Kanaye's hand in both of his.

Takuya drew a breath and stepped forward. "Tomoki," he murmured. "Really..._give me a BREAK!_ What is this? How could you do this in front of your _mentor_ of all people! I thought I taught you better!"

Everyone watched as Takuya continued ranting to Tomoki. Eventually, Fujitaka turned to the vortex. "Let's get going. Kouji, right? At this rate, we'll be finding _Kako_ sooner," he muttered, walking into the portal.

The others followed, nodding their head in agreement. Lastly came Shinya, dragged his brother (who was still lecturing the still frightened Tomoki) and then Kanaye (who was _still_ attempting to dislodge Tomoki).

And yet, none of them could shake off a certain feeling that troubled them.

-------------------------------------

_Ugh_, _does Satomi _have _to open the curtains?_ Kouji allowed one eye to open to observe the room. A bright glow lit the entire room up with a soft, dim light. _Oh_..._wait_. _That's in my dream_. _What's this, then?_ He sat up and yawned, gazing around the room as he stretched his arms in the air.

Kouji felt himself go stiff. "What the heck?" he muttered, gazing at his closet. _Why is it glowing?_ His heart skipped a beat he knew it could never recover. Somehow, Kouji managed to calm down, getting out of bed and trudging to his closet like it was any other day. _Yeah, save the fact that something's _glowing _in it_. _As long as I don't get another Piximon, I'm fine_.

He drew a breath as his hand stretched out to grasp the doorknob. His last thought wasn't exactly a serious one, he supposed, but he meant every single word in his head. _Don't hurt me_.

Without waiting another second, Kouji threw the door open, gasping in surprise and then groaning. "Not _you_," he moaned, seeing the pink digimon. _Stupid Piximons_.

Instead of a retort as Kouji had expected, the digimon fell to the floor quietly. Startled, Kouji picked him up, examining the digimon. _I don't get it_..._it's like he's alive, but not_. Kouji looked around his room, unsure what to do with the digimon. The glow's source was now slightly clearer, but Kouji wasn't sure exactly _where_ it was coming from yet. Gazing at the body in his hand, he sighed and placed Piximon on his bed. "This gets weirder and weirder," Kouji muttered, suddenly becoming confused. _What is this about? No one tells me anything_. _Wait_-_I'm starting to sound like _Kako!

-------------------------------------

"YOU TWO ARE DISGUSTING! GO MAKE OUT SOMEWHERE ELSE!" Almost everyone shouted this, having caught Hideki in the act of kissing Rai. Now, sitting on the floor and glaring at a smug Shinya (who was hiding behind Rai), Hideki sighed.

"It's not like we were going to do something funny."

"WE don't know that!" Izumi shrieked, reddening.

"Ugh, so much trust..." Hideki stuck out his tongue.

Takuya shrugged. "Now...can we _please_ find Kouji _this_ time?" he demanded, running towards the vortex.

"Wait...why twerp two?" Hideki suddenly exclaimed. "Wait for me!"

-------------------------------------

He watched as Kouji opened the closet. _A little more_...

_I don't get it_. _What's happening?_ Kouichi demanded.

Of course, possessing a body always had its downside in the real world.

_Shut up, dammit_. _Remember where you got Takuya's D-Tector?_ _I hope it rings a bell, or I'll have to wring your head_.

_OH! I still don't get it_.

Duskmon let out a sigh, wishing he could punch the boy. But as he was in current control of the body, it would just be more trouble for him. _Those bandana boxes of yours_..._who gave them to you?_ the digimon questioned.

_Aizawa_.

_Taishi is Cherubimon's shadow_. _He planted those boxes on you for safekeeping, knowing they held the rips in the gate to the Digital World from the real world and vice versa_.

_So that's what we forgot!_ Kouichi's spirit seemed to float-Duskmon didn't need to hear or see him to _feel_ it. _I completely overlooked that_.

_Look over all the factors_, _and you're bound to miss one or two_.

_Shut up_.

_Stupid boy, take your own advice_. Duskmon stepped into the room with a sigh, brushing the bangs out of Kouichi's face. _Cut your hair_.

_I did! Before my birthday!_ He was obviously annoyed.

Duskmon ignored him and watched Kouji shudder. "What?" Duskmon asked, smirking. "Are you forgetting something, too?"

"_You_..." Kouji growled, turning to him. The bandana boy paused and waved to Piximon. "Kouichi, do you have _any_ idea what this is about?"

"STUPID BANDANA BRAIN! DO I LOOK LIKE KOUICHI?" Duskmon yelled, eyes aflame.

The younger twin gazed at his brother's body, one eyebrow raised. "Well, you certainly don't sound like him," he murmured. "But whatever, Duskmon. Do you know what this glow's about?"

Duskmon was about to answer when someone (rather, several people) screamed out, "KOUJI!"

The startled Kouji looked over his brother (by standing on his tiptoes), eyes bulging as he saw Takuya fly straight into Kouichi's body, followed by Shinya. Very soon, seeing the crowd in his room, Kouji could do nothing but gape with bulging eyes.

"We found him!" Takuya cheered, looking up and letting out a yelp as Shinya fell onto him. "Sorry, Kouichi."

Kouichi turned his head to the side, managing to avoid having his nose smashed in as Shinya fell onto Takuya. "GET. OFF. OF. ME," he commanded in a venomous voice.

Takuya let out a nervous laugh. "Hey...uh...if I don't, you'll kill Shinya, right?"

"Hah! See Duskmon? You couldn't move a _pig_."

Takuya's eyes widened. "Uh...Kouichi?" he called out, pushing Shinya off and rolling over to stare at Kouichi as he continued a conversation with himself.

"Shut up, boy. You couldn't either."

"Don't tell me to shut up! I'm letting you _borrow_ my body!"

"If you don't stop bugging me, I'll temporarily borrow it!"

"Just try!"

"Are you _testing_ me?"

"On second thought..."

"That's _better_." Duskmon cleared his throat and stood up, brushing himself off. A split second later, he was holding his sword to Kouji's neck, eyes flashing without mercy. "Now fight."

"DUSKMON!" Kouichi screamed.

-------------------------------------

A/N-

I'm running around in circles, here. It'll go past fifty chapters if I'm not careful.

I encountered a certain problem with headaches, which then resulted in my being banned from computers (thus a late chapter) and videogames. Not only am I ridiculously behind in KH2, but in NTB3, which is worse. On the bright side, I was given a chance to review my writing with 'Cursed Gifts.' I'm already on Ch. 6 for that, and if I can finish this story up quickly, I can start posting that up! Unfortunately, I kind of went in a sort of circle there too, so I have to focus again. I hate circles. What the heck?

Haha...I probably shouldn't post it here, because no one cares, but I got a bike. XP (About time). My riding's a bit shaky, though. I totally suck (having not ridden a bike in...four years? Maybe that's what happened to my swimming, too). But I have a summer to improve before I start biking to school, which I'm not looking forward to. I'm really starting to hate US History.

Real sorry for ranting, but I'm just glad to be writing. I'll try my hardest to get the headaches out (and to write in a straight line) so I can post the next chapter. And I know I'm not thanking anyone for reviews by _names_, but I think you know who you are. Thank you _very_ much for actually bothering to read (I'm being so slow nowadays. And it's bad quality, too), because it means a LOT to me.

Thank you, and happy reading!

Review or PM or Flame.


	47. Begin: Obliteration

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

-------------------------------------

Begin: Obliteration

-------------------------------------

"Why are you doing this?" Kouichi demanded, wishing he could push Duskmon out.

Duskmon just grunted and kept where he was, eyes focused on Kouji. With a sigh, the bandana boy shrugged. "Okay. You've got a deal, Duskmon. But first, I have a few questions myself."

A smirk. "Ask away."

"What's the deal with my glowing closet?"

"_Stupid_."

"WHAT?"

"Who runs the bandana shop?" Duskmon inquired.

Kouji, puzzled, looked to the others. Unfortunately, they were just as confused. "Uhh...Mr. Aizawa."

"Who gave Kouichi the boxes to put the bandanas in?"

"I wasn't there!" Kouji scowled, obviously not getting where the discussion was leading to.

"_Do you want my help or not_?"

_Duskmon, remember, stick to what we planned_.

"GAH!" Kouichi yelled. "What's that?"

Duskmon just snorted. "That would be Anti-Duskmon, as you all named him. Now shut up," he commanded. The blade was still held perilously close to Kouji's neck. "_Aizawa_, Cherubimon's shadow. The boxes, your glowing closet, and rips in the gate between real and digital. Get it?"

Silence ensued.

"OH," half the room exclaimed (as the other half being Kanaye's group and Hideki and Rai already knew), suddenly getting the connection. Only Shinya, Takuya, and Kouji stared at Kouichi's body, waiting for Duskmon to explain.

Kanaye, tired of the waste of time, snapped, "Some of the rips in the gate live in those boxes of yours, meaning its Lucemon's main source of control. He can summon his goons through those rips, and Chaos can use them too. Now hurry up and get your fight overwith. We don't have time."

Kouji fumbled with his D-Tector after getting it out of his pocket. "Um...no space?" He suddenly looked up, frowning at the crowd in his room. "We'll _kill_ everyone here if we go with real swords. Even if we were going with bokuto...I think we'd leave them in a coma."

A smirk again. "I thought of that," Duskmon murmured. "But now that we're all gathered together..." He motioned towards the door.

Startled, Kouji pushed his way past everyone and opened the door, wide-eyed. "Sweet...I'm..."

"Home."

-------------------------------------

"Alright. I'll be judging, just because I don't trust two twerps with real swords," Hideki declared. "And you know, this backyard isn't too shabby. Pretty cool if you ask me-"

"GET ON WITH IT!" both twins yelled, although Duskmon's voice came out of Kouichi's body.

It scared Kouji slightly. _Is this how it was when Duskmon possessed me? Kind of...freaky_. Shivering, he tightened his grip on the blade, then relaxed. _No need to get tense_, he told himself. "Alright, Duskmon. Are you playing for keeps?"

"No. For a chance to beat Lucemon," he snapped, lunging forward. "As for Kouichi's body...it's just an easier way to bash that idiot's head in!"

_No fair_. _That jerk_, Kouichi thought, wishing he could throw up as he felt himself lunge forward. At the same time, he felt himself get pulled back. _I feel so sick_...

_This wouldn't happen if you two worked together_.

_Anti-Duskmon_? Kouichi guessed.

_Yes_. Anti-Duskmon continued_, if you two can fight _together_ instead of Duskmon doing all the work while you sit back and relax_-

_Oh! Like Hideki's training_, Kouichi realized.

_Yes_. _You need to trust your allies, even those you cannot bear to trust_.

_But I do trust Duskmon_.

_Then show him he can trust you_. _All we digimon want is for Lucemon to lose and to be rid of Chaos_. _So please_, _work together_.

_Right_..._but do we have to fight Kouji_?

_Yes_.

_Okay_. Kouichi drew a breath. A second later, he felt as if he had plunged into an impenetrable darkness. _Sheez_..._it's cold_.

_It's supposed to be_.

_Duskmon_. Kouichi gazed up at the digimon in surprise. _So_..._can we work together_...? Kouichi knew, even in the back of his head, he sounded a bit _too_ anxious.

_Falter a little, and you die_. _Understand?_ Duskmon's eyes pierced him.

Kouichi shivered slightly, but nodded. _Yeah_. _I understand_.

_Then we'll work together_..._for now_.

A smile lit Kouichi's face. _Hah_, _just admit it_. _We're a team_!

_Why the hell would I do that_? Kouichi could just imagine a scowl on Duskmon's face, though all the digimon did was stare at him in utter disbelief. _Hurry up_. _We have a battle to finish_.

"Sorry, Kouji," Kouichi muttered, feeling his eyes open. "I have to."

Surprised, Kouji's eyes widened as he felt himself being pushed back. "Hey...no Duskmon?"

"Yeah, Duskmon. But...uh...we made a deal," Kouichi explained, dropping his guard and rubbing the back of his neck with a laugh.

"DON'T DROP YOUR GUARD YOU IDIOT!" Hideki snapped, throwing his shoe at the boy.

Kouichi, felt the impact and rubbed his head, glaring at Hideki as he hopped over to retrieve his shoe. Feeling slightly vengeful, Kouichi picked up the shoe and threw it past Hideki as soon as he was only a foot away. "Alright," he murmured, settling in a stance, "Let's go."

_Stupid. Why didn't you listen to me?_ Duskmon snapped. _To the left_.

"Got it!" Kouichi muttered, jumping to his left. He landed on the ground lightly on his feet before springing up and lunging at his brother. "Better parry, Kouji!"

Kouji cursed under his breath. He shoved his right foot back, placing most of his weight forward as he brought his sword in front of him, ready to counter. "Way ahead of you!" he shouted as Kouichi's sword clashed with his own. Smirking, Kouji brought his back foot up and swung it forward, knocking Kouichi off his feet. "Is that Lucemon enough for you, Duskmon?"

Rising to his feet, Kouichi grinned, brushing himself off. "Perfect as Hell," Duskmon declared. _Attack now_. Kouichi composed himself quickly, assuming his stance once more before rushing forward to attack.

With one smooth stroke, Kouji parried the attack, bringing a foot up to kick Kouichi back. "JUMP ALREADY!" the younger boy snapped, seeing his brother's feet on the ground.

"I KNOW!" Kouichi snapped, quickly jumping up and blocking Kouji's kick with one of his own. "Cheapo!"

"Hey, what would Kako say if _she_ were here?"

"We're really weird?" Kouichi suggested, jumping back. Instead of being tired as he imagined, he felt strangely refreshed. "Are...we done?"

"I'd say."

"Great, because we better get a move on it," Kanaye snapped. "Keep in mind, this is still an illusion. We're-"

"And _that's_ where you're wrong," Hideki murmured. "This is...as real as...you getting pinched by Ai in five seconds."

Takuya frowned. "Five...four...three...two-"

"OW!" A glaring Kanaye rubbed his arm, eyes on Ai.

The girl ignored his glare and nodded. "Yup. It's real," she declared, folding her arms in front of her chest.

"You stupid-"

"Don't touch me, or you will _regret_ it," Ai snapped, directing a glare of her own at him.

Defeated, Kanaye turned away from her and looked at Fujitaka, who was staring at him with one eyebrow raised. "What are _you_ looking at?"

"Never mind, Naoko...you win," Fujitaka muttered. "I'll take you there as soon as we win."

"Thank you," Naoko laughed, brushing her hair out of her eyes. "Now let's go _win_ already!"

Izumi nodded. "She has a point. I'm tired of the distractions. Plus I'm completely out of shape." She muttered the last part under her breath.

"Right, let's g-"

"No," Rai murmured, gazing up at the sky. "Lucemon's going to get us when he wants to."

"What?" everyone exclaimed.

Furiously, Junpei punched a nearby tree, immediately regretting it as he snapped through gritted teeth, "We work _this_ hard and we can't hunt him down?"

Tomoki walked over, gazing at his hand, one eyebrow raised. "Is your hand okay?"

"OF COURSE!" Junpei yelled, wanting only to hide his pain. "NOW LUCEMON GET OUT HERE!"

Shaking her head in disbelief, Rai sighed. Her gaze fell to the ground in defeat. "Just...imagine you're free of the illusion. It's because you _believe_ it exists that it does." Rai held back another sigh and shut her eyes. _Kako, I hope you're home by now_...

"Alright, everyone! Let's...uh...imagine!" Takuya exclaimed, shooting his fist into the air. _I have no idea how this'll turn out, but oh well_.

"I feel like I'm stuck in some lame kiddy show," Kouji muttered to Kouichi, seeing everyone staring at Takuya who had shut his eyes and seemed to be trying a bit _too_ hard.

"And I feel like I'll puke if I figure out what he's imagining," Kouichi returned, shutting his eyes and sighing. _Time to beat Lucemon_.

-------------------------------------

Kako sighed and leaned back against the wall. _Maybe I should have just gone home_. _But in any case, I'm lost_. _I might as well just try to find the others _now.

"Piximon, life sucks," she muttered, gazing at the ceiling. "I really miss you. Maybe Kouji didn't mean it...maybe he had his reasoning...but I _really_ do miss you. I wouldn't mind if you came back and told me to do my homework again." A choked sob escaped her and Kako quickly rose to her feet, hand covering her mouth. "Uh...w-well..." She sighed. _Piximon's always asleep_. _Poor guy_. Shrugging the thoughts aside, she continued down the path, placing one foot in front of the other, praying she wouldn't fall.

"Kako! Where are you going!"

"Shut up, Ichiro. I don't need anyone's know-it-all voice in my head," Kako grumbled, shaking her head. Suddenly, she froze in the spot, reluctantly turning around. "Oh...oops..."

Ichiro stood behind her, eyes narrowed and arms folded in front of his chest grumpily. "So _that's_ what you think of me? Man, do I feel hated."

"That would be 'Mon,'" Kako corrected him with a laugh. Still smiling, she asked, "Where's Ryuusei?"

"Gah...right behind him..." A disgruntled-looking Ryuusei appeared from behind Ichiro. As he passed his brother, Ryuusei pushed the older Egawa to the side, twitching visibly. "This _moron_ led us in circles!"

"YOU CAN'T LET THE ENEMY KNOW WHERE YOU INTEND TO HEAD!" Ichiro yelled, recovering quickly from the push.

Ryu looked ready to bite someone's head off. Glaring at Ichiro, he hollered, "WHAT'S WITH YOU AND YOUR STUPID NINJA ATTITUDE?"

"Is that really how a ninja is? Sheez...forget that job," Kako muttered, frowning thoughtfully.

Suddenly, Ichiro rushed forward to Kako, grabbing both her hands. "So, did you get the gift I gave to Izumi?" he asked, smiling eagerly.

"Yep."

"Eh...but you aren't wearing the jewelry...come on, Kako! Even Ryuusei pitched in to buy it! It wasn't cheap, you know!"

"I _told_ you it was a bad idea," Ryuusei snapped, glaring at his brother. "Anyway, Kako...we came to take you back."

Kako's eyes widened as she met his eyes. "But...I can't..."

"You can't stay, I know. Come on. The boat's waiting outside."

"N-no...you don't understand! I can't-" Kako looked down to hide the guilt. _I can't leave them_, _but then I'll be putting Ichiro and Ryu in danger_. _But_...

'_We're being selfish_.'

Slowly, Kako rose her head, though her eyes remained glued to the ground. "I...I want to be a bit selfish." Anxiously, she chanced a glance at Ryuusei's face. He stood there, immobile, an unreadable expression on his face. "Please...I want to find them. I know I'll get in the way, but I want to _know_ they're okay, because they're my friends."

Ryuusei quickly turned around before Kako could catch the look on his face. "Come on, then."

Startled, Kako opened her mouth to protest.

"We won't have that much time. Ichiro and I passed a place that just might solve your problem," Ryuusei continued, looking over his shoulder.

He hardly looked happy, but all Kako could do was burst into tears and run forward, throwing her arms around his neck as he turned around, wide-eyed. "Thank you," she murmured, not letting go.

"I-Ichiro..." Ryuusei looked to his brother for help.

Ichiro just shrugged and sighed, a small smile forming on his lips. "Ah...how sweet young love is..."

"ICHIRO!"

-------------------------------------

"Ahhh...Izumi!"

"SOMEONE HELP?" Izumi glared at the goggle boy, fists clenched by her side.

Shinya walked over and cleared his throat. After a curt nod in Izumi's direction, he turned to his brother and brought his foot back. "This won't hurt much..." As an afterthought, he added, "I think..." Mercilessly, Shinya kicked his foot forward, his target being Takuya's shin. He hit his mark easily.

Everyone ignored the screaming Takuya as he hopped around on one foot, and instead concentrated on the empty room in front of them.

"Where'd Lucemon go...? Rather...Ogata," Kouji muttered.

Kanaye let out an exasperated sigh. "This is ridiculous. He's still playing around. He'll be here soon, though."

Kouichi stepped forward between the two, taking another step forward and stopping there. "Good, because I don't have any patience left."

Both stared at him in surprise. "That...uh...was Duskmon, wasn't it?" asked Ritsuo, who had happened to overhear their conversation.

"No, it was me," Kouichi snapped. "Listen, this is the plan: Duskmon and I should be enough for Ogata. Plus, with me, he can still digivolve." _I think_. "In the meantime, you guys have to go stop Chaos. Kanaye, Ai...you two know what he's planning, right?"

Ai nodded, covering Kanaye's mouth from behind before he could speak. "I've got it covered," she told him.

"Good. Then...we're settled."

"No we aren't!" Kouji snapped. "I'm helping, too! Especially if you two are going to use your sword on him. Because that's all I'm good for at the moment, FYI!"

Kouichi sent a glare in his brother's direction. "You have brains! Without you, we're at a loss! Takuya'll do something stupid again!"

"Hey, don't cut him just yet," Kouji said hastily. "We've come up with some pretty neat plans, right Junpei?" Grinning, the bandana boy looked over his shoulder.

Junpei crossed his arms. A sour look donned his face as he muttered, "Yeah, painting Kouichi's room was _so_ neat...and breaking that window was neater!"

Kouichi snapped his fingers. "Oh yeah. Kouji, at the end of this...you better have the money for that window," he declared.

"DAMMIT JUNPEI!"

"SORRY!"

"Sheez..." Kouichi smiled, watching Kouji run after the older boy. _We're doomed if they do this with Chaos_.

"Yo...twerp..."

Frowning, Kouichi turned to Hideki. "Yeah...?"

Hideki stared the boy straight in the face until he broke into a crooked smile. "You know, you aren't half bad, but that doesn't mean I like you. Just know...if you die, I'm gonna have to follow you and kill you again."

"Got it. Uh...and make sure no one does anything stupid right now."

"Eh...?"

"He's...here."

"Never thought I'd say this, but...MOVE OUT MEN!" Takuya yelled, seeing Ogata jump to the ground from some unknown entrance.

"HAVE YOU EVEN GIVEN A THOUGHT TO THE _WOMEN_?" Izumi snapped, pointing to a newly revealed doorway. "Alright, let's go!"

Kouichi felt a shiver run down his spine, seeing Ogata smirk. _He was expecting this_, the boy thought. _He's got something up his sleeve_. His grip on the sword in his hands tightened. "Hah, I always knew it..." he finally croaked, reddening slightly as he heard his voice crack. _Digimon, I'm tired_.

"Yo," Kouji whispered, his own sword at hand. "Why does Ogata look annoyed?"

"Beca-KOUJI! You idiot, what are you doing here?" Kouichi thundered, dropping his sword to grab his brother's collar and shake him thoroughly. "Idiot, idiot, idiot!" _Oh wait!_ Startled, Kouichi let go of his brother and turned to Lucemon. _He didn't plan _this. _Look who's got something up their sleeve now!_ His smile was short-lived, as he realized he had dropped his sword and the fact that he was facing his teacher. Quickly, Kouichi bent down and picked up his sword, then straightened himself. "Okay. We're ready-"

"Like I care...?"

Kouichi's eyes widened, seeing Ogata in front of him in an instant. _Not good_...! He cursed, seeing a sword materialize in Ogata's hand. For a second, it looked like a mass of dark purple goo before it seemed to solidify and harden itself...even...sharpen. Kouichi gulped, quickly pushing his brother out of the way and jumping himself. _We're as good as doomed_.

"Dammit, Kouichi! Fight him! Where's Duskmon in you?" Kouji yelled, scrambling to his feet. "What would _Kako_ say?"

"Uh...oh...Kako," Kouichi mumbled, staring at Ogata. "Wait...now I'm confused. You knew who we were all this time...even Kako! So why was he so nice to _her_?" Kouichi shouted, bringing up his sword to block a head-on attack from Ogata.

_Does it matter? Questions will be for later, Kouichi! We must defeat him!_ Duskmon's voice rang in his head over and over again, and yet Kouichi couldn't move from his spot. Cursing, Duskmon took control of Kouichi's arms, pushing forward as he rose to his feet. _Move,_ _Kouichi, unless you want to be sushi_.

"I...er...like sushi?" Kouichi winced as Ogata brought the sword up and to the side.

_Bring the sword up! Jump back_, Duskmon commanded.

Kouichi obliged, discovering he was against Kouji's back. _How fitting_.

"Nothing," Kouji murmured, yanking Kouichi back and turning around. "I think I get it." A sigh escaped him before he rushed forward, sword trailing behind him, ready to strike. "Time for Lobo-kendo beta!" Kouji stopped in front of Ogata, a smirk visible on his face. Then...

"He disappeared...?" Kouichi rose to his feet, picking up his sword. _I'm so confused_..._what does he get?_ "Duskmon..."

"We can't let him have all the fun," Duskmon agreed. "Let's go, Kouichi. Are you up for it?"

"Yeah..." Kouichi muttered, pointing his sword at Ogata. "I think I get it now." Wordlessly, he rushed forward, ready to thrust the sword forward.

Ogata blocked the attack easily, grinning. "Stupid," was all he said as he rose his sword to attack Kouichi.

The boy just returned the grin. "Look who's talking..." The older twin watched as Ogata was struck from behind by Kouji. "Good going," Kouichi declared, kicking Ogata over so he was on his back. "So what's the deal with Kako and stuff?" he demanded.

"You...haven't won yet," Ogata snapped, grabbing a hold of Kouichi's leg.

"H-HEY!" the boy shouted, aiming to kick the man's head with his foot. "Duskmon!"

_Say the words_...

"Y-you mean..."

_Yes, now just say them, would you?_ He could imagine a scowl with that sentence.

Chuckling, Kouichi nodded. _This is awesome_. "S-spirit...evolution."

-------------------------------------

Ichiro looked at his brother skeptically. "You...sure this is a good idea?"

"She won't just acquiesce if we tell her to come with us. She'll be more amenable this way."

"Ah...the amenity of the situation," Ichiro muttered sarcastically.

"Just shut up. Look," Ryu murmured, jerking his head towards the girl. "She's happy. Less trouble."

"You kids today just baffle me..."

"Mission accomplished."

"Mission accomplished!" Kako echoed, turning around and beaming at the two of them. "Thank you!"

"H-HEY! ARE THOSE TWO-"

Kako tilted her head to the side and walked towards the see-through glass, gazing down. "They're...leaving...? W-wait! Kouichi-and Kouji-HUH?" Startled, Kako turned back towards the brothers. "They..."

The older Egawa winced, seeing Kouichi pinned down. "Uh...Kako, this isn't a good...um...let's go see how the others are doing!" he suggested, letting out a nervous laugh.

Ryuusei tugged on Kako's sleeve, but the girl was adamant, remaining where she was, entire body pressed against the glass in hopes of a better view. "No...he isn't..." Kako gritted her teeth. _That _idiot. _He's getting us all killed_. "Duskmon, you better not switch sides on us anymore..."

-------------------------------------

_Why'd everything go black_?

He could make out a pinprick of light in the distance. _Hello? Anyone home? Duskmon?_ Kouichi shivered, recalling a familiar feeling. Yet again and again, he told himself, _Duskmon wouldn't do that_. _He wouldn't_. _He isn't brainless or heartless_. Still, his nagging self that he swore to never hide away echoed doubt.

Doubt he wished he _could_ hide away.

_Face it_, the voice told him, _you're as weak as when you started out_. _Possibly even weaker_!

_I'm not_-

_Yes, you are_.

_OH, SHUT UP_!

_What did you just say to me_...?

_SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP_.

_Damn it_..._you little_-

_If I'm little, you're littler_!

_Both of you shut up_, Kouichi commanded. _Nice to know I still have two idiot selves inside of me_. _I'm not weak_. _I'm just_..._not concentrating!_ _That must be it_, he decided, shutting his eyes. _Focus_.

He bit his lip, pushing away all his worries, holding down all his hopes, thinking only of beating Lucemon. Kouichi supposed he lost himself. He wasn't so sure. All he knew was that in the back of his mind, he could hear the reassuring words of a familiar voice.

-------------------------------------

_I'm sorry,_ _Kouichi_, Duskmon thought, opening his eyes and drawing out his blades. _I didn't want to do this again_, _but it is time_. _Time to put an end to things for good_. "Shall we settle this, Lucemon...?" he asked gruffly, pointing his sword in the direction of the disheveled man. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see the unmistakably confused Kouji gaping. "Kouji, I suggest you find the others."

"What are you _doing_, Duskmon? Where's Kouichi?" the boy demanded, suddenly becoming angry. "You're going to _kill him_?"

The digimon just chuckled, smirking as he looked back at Ogata. "If 'him' refers to Lucemon, then yes. Kouichi will be fine. As long as he continues to stay out, he won't be harmed."

"You're possessing him _again_. Of _course_ he's going to be harmed!"

"He knows what I'm doing, Kouji."

"Why can't _I_ know?"

"You are of light. What would you know of the darkness? Loneliness is nothing _close_ to darkness, Kouji. Loneliness can be fought. Darkness...you must live in. Kouichi has experienced everything I have, and more. He understands." _I think_. "Now shut up and leave, pesky boy."

"I'LL SHOW YOU PESKY!"

Duskmon swung the blade around behind him, eyes still glued on Ogata. "Think of who the real enemy is, Kouji..."

_Why does he do this...?_ With a sigh, Kouji drew out his own sword. "Alright...but you need backup. How can I trust that you won't just side with Lucemon?"

"You know, if Lucemon wasn't going to destroy us all, this would be the part where I'd side with him," Duskmon grumbled, swinging his sword back. "Fine. But you better be the last line of the backup."

"Deal."

"Are you two done...?" Ogata laughed, his laughter only growing and rising in terms of volume. "Oh, by all means, Duskmon, try to defeat me! You can never beat me!"

Duskmon just smirked as he suggested, "Digivolve and we'll see."

"Fine then...!" Ogata took a step back and raised his hands, shouting something that neither Kouji or Duskmon could comprehend.

It was the same darkness, no different. Duskmon could attest for that. Darkness rose, covering Ogata from the front, while from behind, light covered him. _And that was how he defeated you last time, wasn't it, Kouichi? This time, he's built his own coffin_. Wordlessly, Duskmon took a step forward, raising his sword. "Time to end this."

_Forgive me_. Duskmon ran forward, regardless of Kouji's yell for him to stay put. It didn't matter anymore; the boy was powerless to stop him. "Goodbye, Lucemon," Duskmon muttered, running past the darkness and thrusting his sword forward, impaling Ogata. _After all_, _the weakest point in the human world is the simple stage of digivolution_. _Surely you knew that a digivolution like yours would take ages_. _And now_, _that leaves them to deal with Chaos_.

Duskmon stood still, gazing at the half dome of light in front of him. _Is it time, my shadow?_ A sigh escaped him. "Then...until they need us again for sure..." Duskmon drew his sword out and rose it once more as the limp body of Ogata fell to the ground. "Slide Evolution...Velgemon." Velgemon took flight, gazing down. _It is time_. "Dark obliteration...!"

-------------------------------------

"STOP!" Takuya shouted, turning around. "What are we doing? This doesn't make sense! Why would Lucemon and Chaos be _separate_?" the goggle boy demanded. "And even if they are...this doesn't feel right." He let out a sigh and confessed, "I want to go back. I don't care if we don't defeat Chaos. I'm going with _my_ instinct."

Junpei and Tomoki exchanged glances. "So you felt it too..." Junpei muttered.

"Eh?"

"Did you know...Izumi already left with Shinya a while ago because she was worried. Hideki snuck off with them, too," Tomoki informed the goggle boy. "They wanted us to stay behind to cover for them. I think Kanaye ran off a while ago and Ai followed him."

"WHAT?" Takuya shouted. After a pause, he muttered, "No wonder it was so quiet..."

Fujitaka snorted. "Everyone else figured it out a _while_ ago, goggle brain."

A twitching Takuya turned around and threw his most murderous glare in Fujitaka's direction. "YOU CAN'T CALL ME THAT," the boy growled, hands outstretched to strangle his classmate.

"ENOUGH!" Rai snapped, tired of the bickering. "Look, if you want to go back, then _go back_, by all means! B-" Her eyes widened as she fell back. "E-earthquake...?" she stuttered, seeing the walls shake. "We have to get somewhere safer. Go back! Hurry!"

"They're going. I think the only ones that need to hurry are us, Ms. Kawai," Naoko murmured, helping her teacher up. "You think that...?"

"It's possible," Rai confessed with a sigh. _I really, really hope not_.

-------------------------------------

"What are you doing? Stop!" Kouji screamed at the top of his lungs, gazing in horror as Velgemon fell into his own attack. "STOP!" the bandana boy tried again, only to collapse onto his knees as he took a step forward. "Please...don't do this...to Kouichi..." _Not again_...

"Twerp two! Up!"

"No," Kouji croaked, turning his face to the side as he fell forward to lie on his stomach. "Not without Kouichi..."

Hideki let out an impatient growl, pulling Kouji up by the back of his jacket. "This is what I _hate_ about twins. They've got that whole, 'I'm not living without my twin!' thing going. TOUGH. Get up, twerp. He'll live. He's the number one twerp, and I know he doesn't want to give that position up to anyone," he muttered, helping Kouji to his feet. "Izumi, can you watch Kouji? Shinya...twerp..." Hideki frowned. _What number was he_?

"Twerp thirty?" Shinya suggested loudly.

"Yeah. For now, you're twerp three. Get over here," Hideki yelled over the roar of the attack. _When will it be over_?

_I said thirty, not three_. Shinya kept shut, though, taking small steps and shielding his eyes against the sharp winds. It almost amazed him to see Hideki just standing there and squinting into the distance, but then again, there was a difference in size to consider. "What?" Shinya hollered, feeling himself being blown back each passing second.

"Turn around!" Hideki suddenly yelled, whirling Shinya around and bending over himself.

Shinya stared at the ground in surprise, not caring if dust got into his eyes. Using his peripheral vision, he could easily make out the red cupola of light. "What...?"

_Dammit_..._Twerp one, you better be okay, or you'll be twerp zero, I swear!_ "Kouichi...I'll _kill_ you in the afterlife if you don't make it!" Hideki yelled. _Not only that, but so will thousands of other people...and digimon_. _Come on, kid_. _You have to make it_.

"It's clearing," Izumi murmured, removing her hand from its place in front of her eyes.

"Where _is_ he?"

Shinya and Hideki looked up, both startled by the sight of a furious Kanaye rushing past them. "Wait!" Hideki yelled, pushing Shinya away and jumping from one foot to another. "You can't! I have to kill him! Kako will kill me if I don't!"

"TOUGH! I'm getting to him first!" Kanaye snapped, jumping into the crater the attack had left and racing to Kouichi. "You _bas_-"

"Language..." Kouichi coughed, rising to his feet. "Language..." he gasped again. "Where's Duskmon? And...m-my sword!" The boy's eyes widened. "Where is it?"

_Welcome back, Kouichi_.

"Lowemon...?" Startled, he looked behind him, seeing the digimon nodding at him. "It isn't over, is it?" the boy asked with a sigh, taking his D-Tector out of his pocket and gazing at it. "Lucemon escaped, didn't he?" _Duskmon's attack went to waste_...

"In a way he did, in a way he didn't," Kanaye answered curtly. Seeing the confused look on Kouichi's face, he sighed and explained, "He'll be back, and soon. But instead of fighting Lucemon...try...CHAOS! You _idiot!_ Why'd you rush in there yourself? I shouldn't have _known_ Duskmon would convince you to do this! Put the prophecy aside! Put _everything_ aside! We don't have to follow some set fate, idiots!"

"Last time...Susanomon helped us," Kouji murmured, wincing as he nearly tripped, limping over to the other two boys. "No...not just Susanomon..._everyone_."

"It'll take a miracle to find Susanomon again," Kanaye spat.

Kouichi gazed at the ground. "I want my sword..."

"We're at the brink of destruction and all you can think of is a _sword?_"

"No. My sword...I felt safe holding it. Not just because I could beat people up, but because I could _remember_ everything I learned. My D-Tector...Lowemon...you guys...that's just what I want to _protect_. I can't...remember anything but a promise. A measly promise that I have to keep. I can't die yet." Kouichi let out a sigh and rose to his feet. "Ogata's body...is gone. The attack...it's probably ashes now, huh?"

"No."

"What?" Kouichi looked up indignantly. "That...but..."

"Look at the _center_ of the crater, idiot!" Kanaye snapped, trying to keep his emotions in check. "Chaos _absorbed_ him." The boy let out a shaky breath and turned around, taking two steps forward before he fell onto his knees. "Chaos..."

Kouichi remained quiet, unsure of what to say. The younger twin, on the other hand, looked up at his brother. "Kouichi...we...no...I need to go home," he whispered, taking a step back. "I'm sorry...but...it's my turn...to skip out on a final battle." Kouji hesitated before digging his D-Tector out.

His brother opened his mouth to protest, but Kouji shook his head quickly. "L-listen, okay? This time...it's light into darkness. I _know_ you can take care of Lobomon," Kouji continued, transfering Lobomon into Kouichi's D-Tector, "and I _know_ you can wake him up. But this isn't my battle to fight _or_ to win. There's someone waiting for you, and they expect you to win. _You_, not _me_. And I'm _not_ talking about Kako, or Duskmon, or Mom. The stars aren't shining on me right now, because I neglected my job. And...I don't really need the sword, either," Kouji added, picking up the sword by his feet and tossing it to

Kouichi. "Take care...?"

"But-" Kouichi started, stepping forward to stop his brother. "You can't-" He stopped, seeing Kanaye's hand outstretched in front of him. "Don't..."

_Sorry_. _I'm so sorry I didn't figure this out sooner_, _Kouichi_. _Maybe then, right now_, _we'd both be at home arguing over something stupid_. _Make it out alive_, _and I promise I won't make another stupid mistake ever again_, Kouji swore, turning around and running off. "Takuya, watch his back," he muttered as he passed the goggle boy.

"Gotcha," Takuya promised quietly, yanking out his D-Tector. "Good luck, Kouji."

-------------------------------------

A/N-

Oh my god...that was _horrible_. After not writing this chapter in ages (it feels like it) and having been writing a story with actual flow, this is just...choppy. If it's a hard write for me, it must be an even _harder_ read for you guys. Real sorry! .:bangs head on table:. No wonder I'm such a crappy writer.

Thank you for the reviews and hits and such and whatnot, and...(**Major note**): I plan to take a break from NTB3 for a while to see what went wrong (A LOT did, that's for sure) and edit it to make it ten times better. In the mean time...

For those who don't know (but I'm sure you do), Cursed Gifts is up. A much better story than NTB3 (which shouldn't be ick as it is), but I can't guarantee that many of you will like the plot line.

I'm incredibly sorry, really, but after posting this chapter, I've realizedmy mind has taken a turn for the worst. I need to get back on track, and instead of rushing, I think it'll take some time. Yes, I know. I hate myself, too.

Review or PM or Flame.


	48. Kouji's Super Special Report

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

Dedication- To **GemmaniGirl** for sticking with me thus far, and to _Seaseal_, have a happy belated b-day. Everyone else, enjoy the last days of summer...

-------------------------------------

The Beginning of The End

-------------------------------------

In the dark of the night, I awoke.

Wolves. The sound of wolves. The first picture that came to mind was Lobomon.

I missed the Digital World. I didn't miss the trouble.

Fighting Lucemon...Murmixmon...all that trouble, and in all honesty...

I hate to say it, but at times, I wonder if it was worth it. The thought only came to me after we defeated Murmixmon. _Why_, I'm asking you, do we have to defeat all these _idiots_?

With all these thoughts, you'd think _I'd_ get the spirit of darkness. I didn't. I got light.

Now Lucemon is here again. Well...kind of. This entire thing...it's like a really bad video game. Nothing seems to add up. Nothing.

I suppose I should get on with my meaningless story now, huh?

Truth is, I _had_ to run out on Kouichi like that. He's my brother, yeah, and I love him (Hah! There's a lie!), but I have to leave, or he really _will_ die. And maybe Hideki'll kill him again in the afterlife, but my head will _really_ be at stake, especially if the afterlife is anything like it is in Yu Yu Hakusho. I'm not ready for some spirit guide to tell my brother it's _my_ fault this all happened.

Really, it is. _I_ gave Lucemon ideas to let Chaos through. Pretty much everything he planned, he planned because of me.

Me. Moi. Yours truly. Wa-ta-shi. _All_ me. (I know that it isn't something to be proud of. Don't tell me that).

So I had to skip out this time. It's my fault. I have to skip the direct physical battle and go fight the indirect one.

The bandana boxes, you see, and every single bandana...I got confused when I yanked out a dead-looking Piximon. I knew, though, that was just an illusion. No one notices Piximon, because he's a dud to us (in other words, no one knows his 'body' disappeared when we snapped out of the illusion). Unimportant. Well...to _them_, at the very least. For me, it's different. I needed Piximon dead _then_ and now...

I suppose it's a go-figure, what with him being in Limbo and whatnot. Maybe guardian angels really do exist. Uh...I'm trying to say _Marise_...as Seraphimon, succeeded in interfering with Lucemon's illusion. Now I can get the actual Piximon's body, fuse it with his soul form, and this is too complicated for you, isn't it?

Don't tell _me_ to shut up. And _don't_ call me a jerk! If anyone is...

On with my story.

It was quite interesting, really. I got lost. Not just lost, cluelessly stranded in a labyrinth from _HELL_. _That's_ more like it.

Fine. I WAS LOST. I SAW KAKO. I SAVED BOTH WORLD'S. Geez, you can guess how it ends, but you want the long story anyway just to see how I mess up...? _SCHADENFREUDE_! And you're calling _me_ a jerk!

Kako was practically choking Ryuusei, and the older Egawa didn't really seem to care (I know _I_ wouldn't have, if I were him). He was preoccupied with the events happening to that twin of mine whose name I shall not speak. I mean...write. Speak, write, whatever.

Take your _schadenfreude_ elsewhere!

By the time Kako noticed me, Ryuusei was probably thinking his last prayers (probably regretting liking her, too).

He should've paid me. I saved him.

The second Kako noticed me, she dropped her hold on Ryuusei. "Why...aren't...you...down _there?_ Are you _letting him die?_" she screamed.

Kako lunged.

I tripped.

And thus began the wonderful strangling.

A few things passed my mind as she began choking me (and I wondered if Ryuusei thought like this, except with his life). First...my family. I wanted everyone together as much as Kouichi. Then, Kouichi reminded me of my bet with Takuya. I drove everyone nuts. More than that. I bet Kouichi lost quite a few years off his life, thanks to me (probably sacrificed them for sanity. I knew Amaterasu favored him). But then I realized that the insanity was embedded in me. It was my new cover. Hey, why go emo when you can make people laugh? And so, I came to on the dusty (and rocky) floor of the labyrinth from HELL.

Ryuusei was holding Kako back and Ichiro was helping. I'm surprised they didn't need a third person.

Somehow (despite the aching bones. My back sure didn't feel the same), I rose to my feet and brushed myself off. "Another jacket gone to waste," I muttered. "Good thing I bumped into you three. I need help pronto...saurus."

"WHY AREN'T YOU-" _Helping Kouichi?_ I thought this to myself, watching as Kako bit Ichiro when he tried to cover her mouth. Really, I thought the answer was obvious.

But Kako's stupid (don't tell her I said that). She wouldn't get it if you shoved it in her face. So I told her, very slowly, too.

"Because," I said, looking around. I mean honestly, does she expect me to tell her at a moment like this? We had more important things to do. "Who has something fast to get us to Japan? My place, even."

Silence.

I stared.

They stared back. Kako was actually silent.

Finally, Ryuusei sighed, and I smirked. Yeah, I'd figured. He _is_ Sorcermon's shadow, after all.

"No, no...Allow me," he muttered, pulling out that small digivice thing.

Actually, I really liked it. If I could just take Kako's...it'd be of real use. After all, she isn't using it.

I really missed digivolving. Ryuusei was making me jealous, just taking his time like that to digivolve. In time (yeah, not, 'In no time.' It seemed like forever!) a grumpy looking Sorcermon stood in front of us. "Mmm..." he murmured, lowering his gaze to the ground. "Close your eyes."

"WHAT? WHY?" both Kako and I demanded. _I_ just didn't want him to pull any funny stuff. I mean, the guy hates my guts. I don't know about Kako, though.

"Shut up and close your eyes," he suddenly snapped.

I'm hurt. Really, what a jerk.

So we closed our eyes. Presto, humbledy doop, abra, kazam. And then we opened our eyes. And we were there (in which 'there' refers to my room).

I didn't care how we got there. Ryuusei had already de-digivolved. Ichiro looked at his brother, one eyebrow raised in askance. Kako was just blinking and looking around.

Why is it I'm the only one doing something useful. "Kako, open the closet. Pull out the bandana boxes," I snapped, slipping into the seat in front of my desk and pulling my laptop onto the desk. "Come on, load...load..."

"You realize it won't load if the Area is giving off certain...waves?" Ryuusei told me.

"THAT'S WHY I WAVE-PROOFED THE THING!" I snapped.

Ichiro pushed me aside. Hey, he's pretty talented, designing those digivice things. So I let him type and whatnot.

The computer loaded. Which was cool, because a second later, my lamp turned on...

...and the bulb broke. Big 'KABOOM,' too.

Enough of the being sidetracked.

Ichiro made way for me, and I waited a bit longer for everything to finalize before I opened my pride and joy…(and I'm not telling you what it is exactly, because I don't have a name for it yet).

Me being me, I had learned to use my computer for cool things, for example, scout the Digital World. Since the Area belonged to the Digital World, I could scout _that_ too. It's a really cool and complex camera thing no one will _ever_ have.

Ryuusei didn't look impressed at the least. Ichiro was nodding, if that meant anything, and Kako was busy with the boxes (and Piximon's other form lay on the bed).

"What now?" Kako asked, gazing at the boxes curiously.

"Open them," I told her, not taking my eyes off the computer. Although, it would have been funny if I snuck a glance. I was tempted.

She opened the boxes one by one while I waited for the screen to appear and show us what was going on. The picture appeared.

Kako screamed.

My room became bright.

I'm seriously surprised that nothing except the lamp blew up.

Kako was positively furious, glaring at me (like I was paying attention) and yelling, "You _knew_ that would happen, didn't you?" She also said a few other things, but I don't think it would be that great to repeat them. Do you?

"Kako," Ryuusei muttered. I managed to look behind me long enough to catch him pointing at the box. "Piximon..."

Startled, she returned her attention to what was inside the first box she opened. "What? No!"

"Yes." I mimicked her tone as I said that. "It's Piximon's body."

"Then what's..._that?_" Who had to look at what she was pointing at to know what she was talking about? Not me. Besides, I was too busy trying to adjust the camera. It was being difficult.

"Piximon's soul."

"WHAT?"

"Just...put the two together," I told her impatiently.

"How?"

"I don't know!" Scowling, I turned to her. "Who do you think I am? Einstein? Figure it out yourself."

Kako stuck her tongue out at me before carefully placing Piximon's body by...Piximon. I returned to my camera, and Ichiro and Ryuusei stood there, half-stunned, half-annoyed, and completely useless.

I hate useless people. Still concentrating on the screen, I told them, "Do something."

Yes, it's obvious Ryuusei hates me. I don't know how he couldn't see the many things that he could have done. He was twitching slightly as he asked, "_LIKE...?_"

You shouldn't use that tone of voice when at someone else's house. I had half a mind to throw him out. "Open the next box."

"I got it," Ichiro said quickly, noticing his brother's..._state_. With a sigh, he walked to the boxes, frowning at them. "I'll open the one to the north," he mumbled. "That's always a good sign."

"You and your signs," Ryu and I muttered under our breaths before exchanging glares.

This time it wasn't so bad. Really pale, green light, not as strong. If you blinked, you missed it. It was _that_ fast.

"Anything in there?" I asked, still trying to locate the part Kouichi and the others were. Who knew that the Core was that big? Maybe it was only because it's the labyrinth from HELL.

"Noth-"

Another light, this time blue. Pale like before. Just as fast.

"-ing..." Ichiro frowned. "Kouji...did you open any of these before?"

"Before? No. Kouichi did, I think," I murmured, too preoccupied with the damn camera to care. I bet Lucemon and Chaos were somehow interfering with the connection.

"MOVE," Ryuusei suddenly snapped, pushing me aside. "You can't even work your own computer? How stupid _are_ you? Why don't _you_ go open the next box?" he snapped, furiously typing on the keyboard.

"It's _my_ computer," I mumbled, sulking to the box. _Why is it that I got pushed out of my own seat? In my own room? IN MY OWN HOUSE?_ See the injustice?

But I suppose it was for the better.

'_I want you both to promise me that you won't do anything that could put your life in danger_,' Mom told us. And opening a box wasn't going to kill me, was it?

I opened the third box, sticking my head over it and looking down. What was there? Bandanas. Two seconds later, a column of pale red light shot up, quickly followed by violet light of the same intensity.

"We're on!" Ryuusei shouted.

"Great!" I ran back over and pushed him out of the seat, causing him to fall onto the floor. "Go open the next box. Hey! It's Kou-ou-oh..."

"Chaos and Lucemon have fused," Ichiro murmured quietly. He stood behind me, eyes narrowed onto the screen. "Do you have a plan, Kouji?"

A plan? I _had_ a plan. My plan was to stop Lucemon before any of this happened. Who ruined these plans? Duskmon, Piximon...Duskmon again. Lucemon.

"Kako..."

She looked at me, obviously confused. All this time, she'd been sitting and watching Piximon. I tried not to look at her...I felt guilty, seeing her look all depressed...

"I need you to find a way to get Piximon back. If not for me, then for Kouichi. If not for Kouichi, then Hideki. If not for Hideki, then for the worlds, okay?" I told her, eyes glued to the computer screen. For a brief moment, I wondered if Kouichi ever felt this way.

"Uh...okay..." she murmured. "But Kouji...you have a plan, right?"

With Piximon...

"Yeah. I have a plan," I said quietly. "Get me Piximon, and it'll work for sure."

"I'll try."

_Try_...it didn't seem like much, but to me, 'try' was better than nothing.

"Ichiro...that 'knowledge' you gave us..." Kako began.

"Nothing," he replied.

"So..."

Ichiro nodded. "If we lose, there will be nothing. If we win, there will be nothing. It _is_ a lose-lose situation. But sometimes, even among nothing, you can find the hope to create something. Isn't that right, Kouji...?"

I really hate it when people are on to me. But if I had scowled and looked away, I wonder what would have happened. "Right," I affirmed strongly, looking at Ryuusei. "So what about that last box?"

"Do I _have_ to?" he scowled.

"YES," we all yelled in unison. It felt pretty good, in all honesty. I was sure everything would go as planned.

If only Kouichi wasn't getting beaten up. Everyone else looked pretty down in spirits, too.

I still had my D-Tector.

"Heh. So maybe we're lucky after all," I murmured, taking my D-Tector out of my pocket and examining it. _USB can go in here_..._and_..._here!_ I shivered slightly as I connected my USB port's extension cable to the D-Tector and connected the other end to the laptop. It fit, at least. As for it working...

Did you know that D-Tectors are awesome memory sticks? They hold like...a terabyte of info.

"How does this voice thing work?" I don't think I ever really used it.

"W-wait...Kouji, are they really the same?"

Kako. Again.

The same? "What do you mean?" I asked, trying not to look annoyed that my work had been halted.

"Are they really the same digimon?" she asked with that same tone of voice that made me feel guilty.

"Uh, yeah, Kako, they are. I don't know how, but they just are. Don't tell me you're doubting the fact that they are..."

"No...it's just..."

THAT VOICE. IT ANNOYED ME.

"I don't want a replacement."

I stared at her. I couldn't _not_. Kouichi had said something about that before. He made me promise I wouldn't hurt myself, because nothing could replace me.

I never really thought about it before, but...nothing could ever replace any of us.

The silence lingered a while longer. I knew Kouichi was having a tough time. I knew Kako was having an even harder time. I hadn't started paying attention until now.

We all wanted to win so badly, even if it meant we wouldn't be able to see our digimon...our _friends_ probably...ever again.

Ryuusei was making his way towards the last box, staring at it skeptically. I had been staring at Kako, but through my peripheral vision, I watched him open it, kneeling on the ground and slowly lifting the flaps. Kako was watching, too, and for the first time, you couldn't see a bit of a child in her. She actually looked mature...more so than Izumi, if that's possible.

The second the light left that box, I think I nearly cried. If you've ever seen those pictures of DNA...it's like that. Somewhat of a double helix...one strand black, one white. Dark and light. The column rose up, hitting the ceiling before it practically blasted down onto my bed, where both Piximons lay. All our eyes followed the light, unable to do otherwise.

It was...beautiful.

I don't think I've ever missed Kouichi more. Him, Lobomon, and everyone else. I regretted everything I had done, and at the same time, I was happy that it had taken place.

That was the moment that I finally realized that everything I had hoped for...all my dreams...all my sorrows...

..._our goal_...

Piximon sat up, blinking tiredly at me. "You," he mumbled. "Kako...where is she?"

"P-P-P-..." Kako sputtered, unable to say anything more.

"You!" Piximon, looking furious, sprang up into the air, scowling at Kako. "Did you finish your homework?"

She burst into tears, grabbing Piximon and squeezing him to death. I kind of felt jealous, watching her sink down and cry on Ryuusei.

If I had opened that box, would that have been me?

But..._our goal_...it was closer than I expected. One look at the computer screen, and there was no doubt in my mind that we would win.

It would be easy.

"Hey...Piximon," I mumbled, trying to hide the tears that were threatening to escape my eyes. "I-It's time. Now."

"Is it? So soon? I've been gone longer than expected," he muttered, pushing Kako away and floating towards me. Perching himself on my head, he declared, "I _knew_ you misfits would be nothing without me! Don't tell me we're losing."

"Of course not. We've never been better," I told him in a firm voice, walking over to the box Ryuusei opened and looking down at the bandana that was folded neatly at the top. I picked it up and smiled at it, deciding it was time I wore it again.

That feeling, from so long ago...when Kouichi vanished from the Digital World...when his fractal code had been scanned by Lucemon...when he gave me his spirits...

I remember, so faintly, hearing a voice sing to me in my distress.

'_So then the townsfolk smiled_,

_Returned to their work_, _leaving the child_.

_In the end_, _although he cried_, _cold_, _alone_,

_Darkness took him and showed him warmth_.'

I wondered...

Who was that boy?

-------------------------------------

A/N-

First off, reference: _Schadenfreude_ is actually a song from the musical, 'Avenue Q.' I don't have the lyrics (I mean, it's in English, and my friends sang it around me during PE last year), but the song claims it is German for 'taking pleasure in another's pain.' The musical is slightly disturbing (I gather this from the songs), but otherwise, it doesn't lie.

Ummmm...I'm sorry. Kouji kind of...sort of...took over me, and he had me scribble down the first few pages. Then, he had me cut it short. REAL short. He didn't even explain half the stuff he was supposed to! So sorry if there are any mistakes.

.:Kouji:. DON'T blame it on me! I'm just a character. You're the writer! See the difference?

Blame him. Next chapter...should be the last.

.:Kouji:. Wait...you forgot something. Go fix it!

GAAAH. I fixed it. Happy?

.:Kouji:. No. One measly sentence doesn't make much of a difference.

IGNORE HIM. In a way, I'm kind of glad, because _NTB_ is almost at an end, but...it's also depressing in its own way. I'll miss it. Still, _Cursed Gifts_ is calling, and my summer is almost at an end. I wonder...was it about this time that I wrote _Second Thoughts_? I honestly don't remember. But thank you, everyone who has taken the time to read NTB.

Review or PM or Flame.


	49. Super Finale

Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

Dedication- To all my readers so far who have continued this story from beginning to end. Especially **GemmaniGirl**. To those who promised to read till the end but didn't, I won't say, "Hahaha, I told you so," but instead: Don't promise something you can't keep. Rather than telling the writers of this website, "I'll keep reading until the end! I promise!" and giving them compliments such as, "You're doing great! Keep up the work!", find FAULTS in their works and point them out, like, "In this line: 'blahblahblah,' you wrote 'blah' wrong." Little things like that. The writer shouldn't be offended, and if they are, they fail to realize the value of your review.

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Super Finale

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"This...the sword...is back to normal," Kouichi murmured, holding the sword out in front of him and gazing at it half-heartedly. "Why...?" His reflection stared back at him with the same, dull eyes.

"Because, stupid," Kanaye snapped. "Are you ready?"

"This...isn't fair..."

Kanaye let out an exasperated sigh and looked away, arms folded across his chest. _At this rate, we're doomed_. _He needs to get his act together_.

"H-hey!" Takuya suddenly snapped. "Didn't you hear Kouji? We have to take care of things here. He's got his own job at home." Silence kept its hold on the room. With a sigh, Takuya mumbled, "Don't you think that Kouji had a hard time in the Digital World, too? He wasn't sure whether you were alive, Kouichi. And worst of all, _Lucemon_ scanned your data. It hurt him a lot. So...so..." The goggle boy bit his lip, unsure of what to say.

"_Grow up_." Kouichi looked up at Takuya. "Right? That's what you wanted to say...?"

"Uh..." Suddenly, he grinned. "You took the words from my mouth."

Someone cleared their throat. "Yeah, okay, great. _Someone's_ forgetting the other people in the room."

Takuya and Kouichi exchanged glances. Then, both stiffening, they turned around to find Ai behind them, glaring. "Three...two...RUN!" Takuya shouted, yanking Kouichi in front of him before he turned around and ran.

"DON'T LEAVE ME BEHIND! YOU'RE WORSE THAN KOUJI!" Kouichi yelled, turning around and falling flat on his face. "CHEATER!"

"Hahaha!" Takuya stopped momentarily to turn around and stick his tongue out at Kouichi. "Sucker!"

"Kids," Hideki muttered under his breath.

Shinya looked up. "Yes?"

"Never mind," the man declared, pushing the younger boy aside. "Hey, Izumi..."

Izumi, who had been busy brushing the dirt off herself, looked up. "Yeah?"

"Too quiet, right?"

She remained silent. _Last time_..._Kouji and Kouichi were talking_,_ and Bokomon told us about Kouichi_. _Now_, she thought, her gaze settling on Kouichi, who was at the mercy of Ai (the girl had chosen to step on his back instead of let him go). _Now_, _Kouji's gone_, _and_...

"Oh wait!" Kouichi yelled, pushing Ai's foot away and causing the girl to fall backward. He stood up, completely forgetting about her. "Duskmon!"

_He's_..._weak_, Lowemon told the boy.

"What?" Startled, Kouichi looked beside him, where Lowemon stood. "Couldn't we do something...?"

"I'm afraid not."

Everyone turned to Rai, who was following Naoko and the others into the cave. "Duskmon is barely hanging on. The last attack he threw should have wiped him out for good, but you..." She fell quiet, practically glaring at Kouichi. "You won't let him go."

Kouichi turned pink, noticing the looks everyone gave him. "Whaa...?"

"Never mind, Kouichi. Just forget it. He'll let you know when he wants, I guess."

"Okay...?"

"Okay. So now Kouji's gone, Kako's gone, Ichiro and Ryuusei are gone, and we've got you nine and two...little...devils," Rai muttered, meeting Kanaye's glare with a dismissive look of her own.

"_I'M NOT A DEVIL_," Kanaye yelled, seething.

Rai completely ignored him, instead looking at Hideki for a split second before she stared at the ground. "I don't know."

Hideki just shrugged. "So this is what we'll do. We'll seal him here and now," he suggested, pointing to the crater. "Cover it with ice and stuff. It works."

"You're _kidding_," Tomoki blurted.

"Nope."

"But...but..." The young boy threw his arms up in defeat. "I give up on you!"

Chuckling, Hideki shook his head. "Yeah, yeah..." he muttered to himself, slowly approaching the edge of the crater. "Still...I wonder..." He frowned, noticing a few nearby pebbles. "He's..."

Silence.

"_Bye_, _bye_, _birdie_," cackled a familiar voice.

"Rai!" Hideki shouted, lunging in her direction.

"_Shut up_! _Insolent fool_, _I'll have to get rid of you first_."

"I...don't believe it..." Izumi whispered, rising to her feet.

Even Ai stood up, eyes set hard on the center of the crater. "_Lucemon_," she hissed, taking a step back.

_No!_ Kouichi swallowed, his eyes now brimming with tears. "I'm...I'm not..." _I'm not ready!_ He bit his lower lip and took several steps back. It didn't make sense. Seconds ago, they had been happy, having the best times of their lives. Heck, even Ritsuo and Fujitaka were attempting to make a rock castle out of nearby pebbles.

And now...

"Stop," he whispered weakly, feeling himself back up into the wall. _Not yet_. _I don't want to fight just yet_. _Please_..._I need to keep them safe_.

There had been a long silence. Kouichi gazed with unfocused eyes at the mess that had occurred.

Ms. Kawai, supported by Hideki, was gasping for breath and fighting to keep her eyes open. Both sank to the floor, eyes wide in disbelief.

Lucemon, as Kouichi remembered seeing him for the first time, hovered above the center of the crater, smirking. The hand that had been raised in the direction of Ms. Kawai dropped to the floor.

"Pathetic," came his sneer, breaking the silence.

He felt cold. Kouichi swallowed, trying to calm himself. His D-Tector fell out of his hand, which was now clammy.

"Come on, Rai!" Hideki hissed frantically.

_Why_ couldn't he move?

His eyes shut, Kouichi drew a ragged, uneven breath, sinking to his knees. "I…can't…"

"Kouichi…"

Silence, again. He couldn't understand. They had all helped him become strong, gain a new confidence, and he was losing it. Again, he repeated, "I can't." Then: "Don't you see? _This_?" He gestured towards Lucemon and continued, "I'm only human! All those other times where I might have seemed strong…that was a fluke! And if it wasn't for you guys, where would I be? I know you're depending on me too, but I can't-!"

"Shape up!" someone snapped. All eyes turned to Ai. "Oh, god, this is disgusting. You mean I betrayed Lucemon for _this?_ I'd have been better off following a monkey around! How _dare_ you doubt yourself-not only in front of your enemy, but your friends, too! Think about how Kako must feel! 'I like a coward, I can't believe it.' Did you plan to make us a laughingstock?"

Kouichi winced, letting his eyes fall to the ground. "I _am_ a coward! I know that! I can't change-"

"DON'T FINISH THAT!"

Startled, Kouichi looked up. "Kako…?"

"You _brat_, get up! I expected _Kouji_ to be spoiled, but not you, you pampered brat! Get up and _do your share_!" she yelled, sounding more desperate than angry.

"I-"

"Yes, Kouichi, do your share. You did quite well last time. I remember your data particularly well," Lucemon cackled. "Shall we have an encore presentation of that?"

Another voice replaced Kako's. "Kouichi, don't listen to him! You don't even have to listen to Kako! Look, I've managed to open a temporary gateway with Piximon's help. You guys should have backup soon. You know what to do."

_Kouji_, Kouichi realized, scrambling to his feet. "I…" Swallowing, he turned around, forgetting completely about Lucemon. "Yeah…you're right."

"No _duh_?" Kouji muttered. "Susanoomon is waiting! Give the gate a final blow and send 'em all flying!"

"That made no sense," Kouichi whispered under his breath. Aloud, he asked, "Hideki, can you take care of Ms. Kawai alone? Ai, help him if you can. The rest of you…" The boy bent down to pick up his D-Tector. "I'll need your help…" Kouichi lifted his hand up so his D-Tector was straight out in front of him.

Obviously startled, Takuya pointed to Lucemon. "But Kouichi…"

"I know. Please…?"

One by one, each pointed their D-Tectors into the center of this strange circle they had created. When eight more held up their hand, Kouichi looked at Kanaye expectantly. However, the latter merely shook his head.

"Hit him for me. I'm powerless against him. My powers…if they even exist anymore…" He lifted his hand palm up and gazed at it. "My powers will only hold you back." Another pause. "hurry, Kouichi. A world should never be exposed to this much Chaos for long."

With a heavy sigh, Kouichi nodded. _I hope I still have this in me_…

_Someone_, _anyone_…_help us_?

-------------------------------------

"Kouji, why did you give Kouichi Lobomon?" Kako suddenly asked, watching as he began poking the computer mouse restlessly.

"True light can only be found in the dark. I believe in him. And…_I'm lazy_. But you didn't hear the last part," he added hastily.

"What didn't I hear?" she asked, looking clueless.

"There we go."

Becoming serious, she then questioned, "But what did you mean you opened the gate? What gate? I didn't see you do anything!"

"You were busy eating downstairs," Kouji replied absentmindedly. "Man, why is he taking so long?"

"In…five minutes?"

"Try fifteen…at the very least, ten. How much did you eat?"

"Well, I ate your share, too. I was hungry."

The corners of his lips bent downwards as he muttered, "So that's what Ichiro was apologizing about…"

"Kouji," the girl muttered impatiently. "You didn't answer my question."

For the first time in minutes, Kouji looked up from the computer. His eyes were watery and red from the strange fatigue that had plagued him for a mere thirty minutes. "Piximon and I opened a gateway into the Dark Area. Any digimon can enter and help Kouichi and the others. It's still off limits a bit, but we have Duskmon and Susanoomon on standby. One attack will be all we need to open it fully. Also..." He paused and shut his eyes, blanching as they began to sting. "It's a lot easier to…well…if all else fails, I can lock the Dark Area, delete it, and…the Digital World will be destroyed in all technicalities, because-"

"But the others!" Kako interrupted. She rose to her feet and desperately tried to reason with him. "Kouichi, _Shinya_, Hideki! They'd be gone, too!"

Kouji nodded mutely, keeping his eyes shut. "But that's the last resort. I'm trying to see if there's another way. But the Chaos is drawn to Lucemon…unless there was a potential servant in the Digital World, it would stay clumped within Lucemon…"

Quietly, the girl gazed around her and sank down on the bed. "But…but then…"

A frown appeared on her lips. Kouji opened his eyes and quickly became troubled by the look on Kako's face.

"I was thinking," Kako murmured, "You have your gate, but…what started this was…"

"Of course…!" Kouji swiveled the chair around and gazed at the boxes filled with bandanas. Then, aloud: "Ichiro! Ryuusei!"

-------------------------------------

_Hello_…?

**You…what do _you_ want?**

_Who-_?

**I will be asking the questions**.

_I don't have time for questions! I want help_!

His stomach seemed to twist into a not as another voice murmured weakly, "It's fine. It's just _them_."

His eyes opened.

"Woah…" someone whispered in awe (most probably Shinya).

Kouichi felt a strange wave pass through him as he looked at what was in front of him. "Dus-"

"Not me you should be looking at. This guy…" A tired-looking Duskmon was sitting down, scowling at Kouichi as he waved a dismissive hand at Susanoomon. "…he's your problem-solver." After a brief pause, he stood up and opened a door Kouichi hadn't noticed before. "And _then_…"

The door creaked open, revealing something familiar, something the children hadn't seen in a long time.

"Those are…"

"…all…the digimon!" Takuya yelled, taking a step forward with the intention of charging through the doorway. A hand pulling him back brought him to his senses, and he stopped with much reluctance. "But-"

"Notice the shiny yellow lasers that are probably going to kill you," Fujitaka snapped.

Duskmon chuckled. "They won't kill you. They're simply bars to stop the digimon from leaving," he explaining, sinking back to the floor as reluctantly as Takuya had stopped.

Swallowing, Takuya nodded. He turned, wiping sweaty palms on the coarse cloth of his shorts, to Susanoomon, then bent over in a deep bow. "Please," he began. "We need…we need you to-"

All at once, everyone began to try to explain what had happened.

"Lucemon-"

"Rai got hurt-"

"It wasn't our fault-ow! Okay, maybe it-OW!"

"We _just need help!_" Izumi cried desperately, silencing everyone else. One by one, the children all turned to Susanoomon, expectant looks on their troubled faces. And slowly, an explosion of hope, anxiety, and so much more filled their eyes.

"Please…?" Kouichi murmured in a barely audible voice, breaking the unknown silence.

Susanoomon's piercing eyes narrowed on the boy. The digimon finally spoke:

"While we owe you children for saving our world before, we certainly don't owe you the destruction of our world for yours."

"So you'd rather Lucemon run rampant in _both_ worlds?" Ritsuo blurted out.

"_You're_ one to talk, boy." Satisfied with the effect his words had on the boy, Susanoomon continued, "_However_, because it _is_ our fault anyway…and because you can apparently turn trash into treasure…" He paused here to kick Duskmon's arm, causing the injured digimon to spew out several curses. "And so, we are indebted to-"

Without warning, Kouichi declared, "This isn't about a debt. Do you _want_ to help or not?"

"Kouichi!" Half the humans gasped in disbelief.

But Kouichi remained adamant about his point and clenched his fists. "I'm _sorry_, but debts go to my head. I promised myself nothing bad would happen to _any_ of you, and Ms. Kawai's already hurt! I can't let my guard down anymore! If you've got a problem with it, bother me _after_. But for now, _I_ owe you all! So you either _want_ to help, or you _don't_!"

Two firm glares were exchanged between the soft eyes of Kouichi and the hardened gaze of Susanoomon before the digimon finally announced his decision.

"We don't want to."

The faltering in his movement was obvious, but Kouichi managed to bow before the digimon calmly. "Thank you." Then, turning to the others, but looking at the floor so he wouldn't betray his emotions, he murmured, "Let's go."

There were protests, but finally, the children disappeared in a flash of light. Susanoomon chuckled as he watched them leave. "Rather impulsive," he declared in a deep voice, turning to Duskmon. "Lowemon didn't lie. You _did_ rub off on him." He turned to Duskmon, now serious. "But are you sure you want to participate."

The digimon nodded grimly. "More than ever, it has to be done." There was a pause. Then, Duskmon rose to his feet and gazed at the twinkling yellow beams that barred the digimon from passage to the real world. "And…" he murmured, lifting his blade arm, "I'm not alone."

-------------------------------------

The doorbell rang.

Five seconds passed before the doorbell rang thrice more.

Ryuusei let out a curse and made his way to the door. "Who the-" He stopped as he threw the door open to reveal a middle-aged woman who looked too worried for her own good.

"Uhm…sorry, no solicitors…?" he mumbled, reddening immediately. _Damn, what now…_?

"I-is…Kouji…"

"Uh…? Kouji?"

"_Ichiro! Ryuusei!_" Kouji suddenly yelled upstairs.

"What, dammit? Come downstairs!" Ryuusei snapped back angrily. Remembering the woman in front of him, he bit his lip as an afterthought.

An unintelligible curse echoed. "Why should I, you damn-" There was another curse, followed by the footsteps of Kouji as he ran out of his room. He practically slid down the stairs and stopped just short of grabbing Ryuusei by the lapels. "Ichiro! I need you at the computer, and _Ry_-M-Mom?"

"Uh…I'll…go upstairs and see what Kako needs!" Ryuusei squeaked hastily, running around Kouji and dashing upstairs.

Kouji swallowed, unsure of what to do. _I'm grounded for sure_. "Um…"

"Tea's ready, Kouji. Invite her in," Ichiro murmured from behind the younger boy.

Kouji gave a start and turned from Ichiro to his mother. "Wha-? Oh, uh, Mom! This is…Ichiro. He's from…"

"Osaka," Ichiro filled in.

"Really?" Kouji turned around in surprise.

Ichiro shot the boy a strange look before moving forward to usher Ms. Kimura in. "Come, come! There's tea in the kitchen. Kouji will explain and I'll go see what's wrong upstairs!" He shut the front door, smiled at the woman, having successfully brought her in, then headed for the stairs without a word to Kouji, leaving mother and son alone to gape at each other.

Kouji swallowed, then gazed at his shoes. He broke the silence awkwardly muttering, "Uhh…shall…we go drink…tea?"

Ms. Kimura held her ground, her eyes focused softly on her youngest son. "I think…no…as your mother, _I know_…_I demand_ an explanation, Kouji. It's…it's about time I know what's going on," she said in a firm voice.

"Mom-" Kouji stopped, but his mother took advantage of the brief pause.

"_Please_, Kouji! I know you're fine, but Mr. Saito told me that Kouichi broke his promise. Just tell me-"

"Then just…just wait!" Kouji exclaimed, gazing desperately at his mother. "I'm _trying_, Mom, really! So please, wait just a bit longer!" Kouji bit his lower lip, unsure of whether he was doing the right thing, then turned around and dashed up the stairs, yelling for Kako to stop playing card games.

Tomoko Kimura found herself gravitating towards the kitchen, her eyes sweeping over the various pictures and other items that lay around. A small smile graced her lips as she saw the two cups of tea at the table. One had fallen to the side sometime before, and its contents had spilled to the floor.

_I can't keep up with them anymore, Kousei_. _They're growing up to be just like you_…_only_…_I think_…

Tomoko Kimura bent down and gazed at the puddle of spilled tea to find a reflection of herself. With a small smile, she set the fallen cup upright before standing up. "It seems I'll have to pour myself another cup…" _And maybe while I do, I won't get carried away_, she mused. _After all, there's no use in crying over spilled tea_.

_But Kouichi_…_I'm not the only one who holds you dear_…

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"No reinforcements?"

Kouichi was the first to open his eyes and he immediately directed a baleful glare at the speaker.

"I'm really starting to hate that look," Lucemon growled.

The boy opened his mouth.

"I'm really starting to hate that voice," someone else returned. A boy's voice…

"Ryuusei," Kouichi said aloud.

"Ogata Gin, Lucemon's container, or shadow if you will. Name change: once. Major: Ancient Civilizations and the like. Participated in the DM project with Marise Saito and Harumi Aizawa. Left two years later due-"

"Is there a point to this Kouji?" Kouichi interrupted. "If not, shut up and figure out some other way." He held his D-Tector up, pointing the object at Lucemon.

"I'm working on it!" his twin returned.

Silence followed, until Lucemon let out a cackle. "No reinforcements...and your friends don't seem to be coming to..."

Kouichi's vision darkened before he looked around to discover he was the only one of his party standing. Everyone else was on the ground, sprawled out, D-Tector in hand. There was only one thing wrong with the picture, and that was that Hideki, Rai, Kanaye and Ai were missing.

The facts not adding up, Kouichi drew a breath and concluded aloud, "Illusion! This is an illusion!" He held his breath as the picture before him vaporized into mist, revealing his friends, all of who were looking at him in conclusion.

But there was no time for explanation. Breathing a sigh of relief, Kouichi turned to Lucemon. "We'll beat you...no matter what."

"Confident, are we?"

"Let's take this from an _artistic_ viewpoint, shall we?" Kouichi suggested, hoping he could buy time while the others figured out what to do. "The sunrise, so soft and gentle as it is, never came this morning. A sunset...bright, vibrant colors...daring...and that's what we are. We're going to end this day by wiping you out, and we'll start again."

Lucemon scowled. "Little brats! How about a time limit?" he sneered. He snapped his fingers to reveal a giant, circular clock with a red frame. The clock floated over Lucemon's head, bobbing up and down ever so slightly. "Thirty minutes," Lucemon drawled, and the clock's hands set themselves at twelve. "Thirty minutes until I destroy this place for good. Is the pressure too much?"

"Thirty minutes is enough!" Kouichi snapped, but he wasn't so sure of himself. "Lowemon-"

"Don't be a fool!" came a harsh, reprimanding voice. "We can finish this in _five_ minutes!"

Angrily, Kouichi looked over his shoulder to discover Susanoomon. Somewhat bitterly, he snapped, "You don't want to help, so don't! We don't need your help!"

"Kouichi!" came several protests, but Susanoomon silenced them with a dismissive wave. Rather than address Kouichi, he turned to Lucemon.

"You...intend to destroy us. Just knowing this is insulting enough; we will exact our revenge, and we will do so now. As digimon, it is our duty to protect the Digital World to its last days. We don't need any _human_ to help. Although..." Susanoomon gazed back at the children. "We would appreciate any help."

"Then..." Takuya choked momentarily as he brushed away his tears. "Let's get going!"

"Kouichi," Fujitaka said aloud. "We're going to need your help to keep the gateway open!"

Slowly, Kouichi turned around, his eyes glued to the ground. "I...I'm sorry, I thought-"

"Don't flatter yourself. This is for the Digital World. _Not_ for you," Susanoomon snorted.

Kouichi gritted his teeth and looked up. "Don't flatter _yourself_! I was merely going to say I thought _we_ weren't necessarily needed anymore, seeing as last time we _were_ you! Or...at least everyone else was. And I thought _Kouji_ was opening the gate" There was a slight pause before he asked, "_Can_ you take care of him by yourself?"

"You doubt me?"

With a soft exhale, Kouichi took another two steps forward and held out his D-Tector. "Let _every_ digimon get a hit on him, Susanoomon!"

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Kouji let out a sigh and positioned the cursor over the button. "Digital Gate...open, please," he breathed, pressing his hand down on the mouse.

-------------------------------------

Duskmon gazed at the yellow beams of light that barred his fellow digimon from passage. "Piximon," he murmured.

The pink digimon appeared beside him, staff pointed at the tall black door in front of him. "Ready! If all you digimon back there would take two steps back!"

In less than two seconds, they broke down the bars that kept the digimon back. One by one, the digimon crawled through the threshold, seeming to be a never-ending army.

"The rest is up to us! Keep the balance, Duskmon!" Piximon shouted above the battle cry of the charging digimon. Soon, he too, joined them.

Duskmon merely shook his head, gazing at the digimon with a peculiar look in his eye. The emotion wasn't too new to him, but he could hardly call it familiar.

"In the end...that's not really up to me," he muttered. _It's all up to_...

-------------------------------------

The computer shut down. Kouji bit his lower lip anxiously.

"Think it went through?" Ryuusei whispered aloud.

"It has to have!" Kako declared firmly.

"It did," Ichiro confirmed. "Don't worry."

"It did," Kouji repeated to himself over and over again. "It did..."

-------------------------------------

He wasn't sure how to explain it. Were it a computer screen before him, Kouichi would feel free to say, "Big pixilated blobs of all colors."

It wasn't a computer screen in front of him.

"Susanoomon! For the Digital World!" Kanaye called out.

"Kouichi, for everyone!" Hideki's voice strained as he shouted, cracking at the end.

Kouichi gazed at his D-Tector, then immediately looked up, understanding what Hideki had meant. In front of him stood Duskmon, glaring coldly down at him.

"Sometimes you need to give up on something, even if it's a part of yourself. Hurry up. I'm tired of this world," the digimon snapped.

Kouichi gazed up, ready to protest. "But-"

Duskmon lifted the boy by his collar effortlessly. "You stupid boy, _realize_!"

A scream pierced the air. Kouichi's eyes watered, and the giant multicolored blob of digimon faded, instead leaving him sightless.

Duskmon's voice entered his ears, piercing through the darkness and frightening Kouichi. "_This_ is what your world will become if Lucemon wins: _nothing_. Hate me, let everything return to what it was!"

He was dropped back on the ground. "I hate the bad side of me, but..."

"I _am_ your bad side!" Duskmon roared. "Don't you get it?"

"I don't have _that_ bad of a temper!" It wasn't a good time to joke around, but Kouichi felt reassured by the massive army of digimon that were covering Lucemon and dragging him to the ground.

_Twenty-five minutes left_. _Susanoomon lied_.

Several coughs startled the two.

"Hurry, please, Kouichi," Izumi snapped.

_Kazemon and the others are joining in the charge_. _Piximon's there, too_...

"Besides," Duskmon added, "Anytime you need to remember me, your ugly side can start a rampage."

Kouichi let out a snort. "Then I'd like to _not_ remember you, thanks! Forget you!"

"Do that!"

"Takuya!"

"What?" the goggle boy returned, shouting solemnly just as boy and digimon had seconds before.

Kouichi turned to the boy and chose to ignore the little fact. Instead, he said, "They can't download fast enough. Let's open it fully!"

"No problem," Duskmon muttered. "Just wait. Susanoomon, now!"

"Understood!" Susanoomon turned to Duskmon just as the latter of the two drew out his blade.

And Susanoomon continued to stand still, even after the dark blade pierced through his armor and through his back. Although the gasps echoed, Susanoomon merely said, his voice still strong, "To be a vessel of Chaos, possess the ability to destroy _every_ _single_ digimon...and be drawn easily to darkness...live in darkness, _be_ darkness..."

He watched as a gray-purple mass gathered around Lucemon, who was still struggling to escape from the army of digimon. Yet there was no escape. The Chaos swallowed Lucemon, and all the digimon around him, then flooded towards Duskmon eagerly. "Chaos, having no eyes, cares not how this is done. It _feels_ the strength of digimon..." The mass was now pooled at their feet. "And..."

"Pain," Kouichi finished in a murmur. He gazed through clouded eyes at Duskmon as the said digimon looked apprehensively at the matter crawling around him. "You...you really _are_ heartless..."

Duskmon snorted and looked at Kouichi. "You don't know the half of it," he sneered as he faded, the Chaos right behind him, taking Susanoomon along, too.

_No! I said we're going to start again!_ Kouichi gripped the cloth of his pants, trying not to scream. But it came out anyway. "Coward!" Kouichi shouted. _We were going to start again! All of us! _"It's not like that's the only way! You're just afraid!" _I'm afraid, too! But I want to start again! We _will _start again!_ Caught in the moment or not, Kouichi jumped after Duskmon through the opening the Chaos had made.

"Wait!" someone shouted.

"Hold it!"

In the midst of all the cries and the tearing of dimensions, there was an unheard scream of a digimon who was reduced to nothing for the final time...

-------------------------------------

"Kanaye, get everyone and bring them here. Piximon," Ichiro explained, waving to the digimon resting on his head (who had also managed to hide behind Hideki while Chaos had swallowed everyone else). "Piximon will close the gate from here."

"Ichiro, Rai-"

Ichiro shook his head. "It's not-"

"What the _hell_ are you trying to say?" Hideki screamed.

"It's too late!"

"You left-"

"Shut up! Look, she wrote this a while ago," Ichiro murmured, holding out a letter.

Hideki rose to his feet, clutching Rai to himself tightly. "No matter what, I'm going to take her, too."

"Everyone's ready!" Kanaye shouted.

"But Kouichi!" Tomoki insisted.

"No time," Ryuusei snapped. "Besides, I know for _sure_ that _he'll_ be fine _no matter what_." He gazed around at everyone. "Close your eyes and hold hands. Don't let go-Ichiro! Your hands are sweaty! Disgusting!"

"Get on with it, kid!" Hideki snapped.

"Let's go!"

-------------------------------------

"Feels good to be kind," Duskmon sighed.

"You won't be for long!" Kouichi snapped.

The digimon shrugged. "What can you do, Kouichi? Besides," he murmured.

"Besides what? This is your _worst_ idea!"

"Yours, too. How do you plan to get out of this?"

"Don't be stupid! Whether I'm back or not doesn't matter!" the boy shouted. "It's not going to-"

"Whether _I'm_ there or not doesn't matter!" Duskmon thundered. "More people care about you than you think. You and Lowemon are the only ones who will care if I'm there. And Lowemon is going where I'm headed anyway...except...maybe not. Don't worry, Kouichi. I can control anything that tries to take control of me, unlike you."

"Shut up! Stop thinking of yourself!" the boy screamed.

Duskmon let out an irritated sigh.

"That's all you ever do," Kouichi continued, wiping his eyes.

"And you?"

"What?"

"I've already told you, Kouichi. Only you and Lowemon will miss me."

The boy gazed at the floor in defeat. "But-"

"Ahhh...it's collapsing."

"What?" Kouichi looked up. "No...!" But the bright light seared around them.

"I want to sleep now. Maybe one day..." Duskmon paused. Seeing the tears in Kouichi's eyes, he continued softly, "Maybe one day, I will wake up again."

Kouichi watched as Duskmon disappeared in a shimmer of light for the very last time. "Wake up soon," he begged quietly. "Please..."

_We will start again_..._as ourselves_. _So please_...

-------------------------------------

"Ryuusei!" Kako cried, embracing the boy. "Where's Kouichi?"

"S-see...about that-_Augh_..."

Kako's smile faded.

"What?" Kouji blurted, rising to his feet.

"Kako, don't worry. Twerp'll be fine. Rai-" He stopped, then looked at the woman in his arms. "Well...w-well..."

Ryu managed to separate himself from Kako and fell back. The girl gazed from her brother to the unconscious Rai, unable to tell where the blood might be. She swallowed and took a step back.

"Kako-" Ai started.

"Walk," the first girl managed to say. "I'm...I'm going for a walk."

They all stared at her, each unsure what to do as she pushed past everyone to drag herself out the door and down the stairs. Then, heaving a sigh, Kouji told them all, "Don't worry. Mom's downstairs, so Kako'll never get past the front door. But...uhm, might I suggest we get Rai to the hospital, Hideki? Ai, Kanaye, Junpei and Izumi, you go with him. And Ichiro..."

"Don't ask me for help," Ichiro declared.

"But-"

"Have you forgotten so easily," the man began, "that you gave your brother Lobomon?"

Kouji's eyes widened. It was at that moment that he realized the truth behind the sugared lie he had told Kako.

"'_In true darkness, light can be found_,'" Ryuusei quoted. "That's what you said. You were loud about it, too."

"Besides," Shinya added. "Kouichi said he was special because he's the only one who calls me krill, so he _can't_ die!"

"Grow up, Shinya," Takuya snapped. "That's not the reason!"

"Yeah? Then what is?" the younger Kanbara scowled.

"It's because Kouichi's as good as light himself," Hideki said aloud. "So Kouji, I'm going. Back your brother up _no matter what_."

"I _will_," Kouji snapped. It only hit him after Hideki left that the young man had in fact _not_ called him 'twerp.'

"While Hideki fights the battle of sorrow, let us fight a battle of hope," Tomoki murmured.

"Quite the poet," Naoko remarked.

"I wish," Tomoki laughed. "But...I have been redoing _that_ song. You know, the one in Bokomon's book?"

"Wouldn't remember," someone remarked, and everyone let out a short, embarrassed laugh.

"Well...it went like this..."

-------------------------------------

"Kako..." Tomoko rose to her feet, seeing the young girl at the doorway.

Kako looked up, then winced and tried to avoid the woman's gaze. "I...I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"You don't know...that's right." Kako sighed, her glossy eyes glued to the floor. "Everyone _but_ Kouichi. They're back, but..."

"But..."

"I want _him_ to come back. Everyone else is leaving, but I want him to be _here_."

Ms. Kimura smiled and led the girl to a seat. "Here, have some tea," she said softly, taking a sip of the said liquid from her own cup. "Kouichi..._will_ come back," she said firmly. "As to whether he'll tell me what happened or not, I have no clue. You remember, don't you, Kako?" She smiled at the girl. "That little boy used to be all the trouble in the world..." A small laugh escaped her. "And yet, somehow...we managed..."

"We set him straight," Kako murmured, a small smile breaking onto her face.

"Like a cup that had fallen over and spilled its tea..."

"He cried a lot that day, didn't he?"

"He did...but we set him straight," Ms. Kimura murmured. "And so he _will_ come back."

"He promised," Kako mumbled. "I'm sure he did...one day...he promised..."

Tomoko placed her cup down on the table and gazed at Kako. "Cry for him if you want, Kako," she whispered to the girl, trying not to cry herself. "Just..._please_, cry because he's coming back..."

"I know," the girl choked, trying to stop the tears from falling. Her throat felt heavy, and she was completely unable to speak. _I know_...

_But it irritates me to know he'll be so different when he comes back_.

-------------------------------------

It was dark. Kouichi figured Chaos had swallowed him, too. He pulled out his D-Tector from his pocket.

He wasn't sure why. He couldn't see, but he could feel it. Yet now, he doubted his senses.

His D-Tector...

Smooth...the screen had been smooth, and it still was. The rubber grips were in place...and the buttons, although he couldn't make out the shapes, were all there. Yet something was different. He just couldn't put his finger on it.

_A difference in weight?_ Kouichi blinked. It was useless, he knew, and yet-

_I can_..._see_?

"You could always see, Kouichi."

_That voice_..._who_...? _Lobomon_!

"Yes."

Kouichi turned around in time to see the digimon yawn. "Took long enough. It seems I was late for the party. As I was saying, you could always see. You were simply _afraid_ to see, so you couldn't. You could speak, but you are _afraid_, and so you can't. Because I'm here..." Lobomon snorted. "Because I'm here, that fear has lifted, and so your senses can be."

"Can I not go home because I'm afraid to?" Kouichi asked.

Lobomon scowled. "Don't be stupid!"

"Sorry."

"After all, I'm to die here."

"The rest of the digimon...Lucemon...Ogata...?"

"All taken by Chaos, even Susanoomon. Piximon was at the end, too. Duskmon should be around here somewhere, but I can't be sure where. As for me, I just got out now, so it should be a good deal of time before Chaos finds me."

"Where-...no...how do I get home?"

"Do you remember home...?"

As hard as he tried, Kouichi couldn't remember a single detail. All he could remember was Duskmon...and so, he guessed: "The Digital World...?"

"Wrong," Lobomon scowled.

Kouichi blinked in surprise. "Not...the Digital World?"

"No, Kouichi. It's about time you look at what Ryuusei gave you."

"Ryuusei," Kouichi repeated. "That's..._him_," Kouichi murmured, recalling a blond boy as he dug a small packet out of his pocket. "What's this?" He tore the packet open, spilling white powder all around him. Kouichi began coughing and brought an arm up to his nose to prevent himself from inhaling the dust. "'_It's sleepy powder_. _Kako's waiting. Go to Dreamland now_,'" he read. "What does that-" He looked up to realize Lobomon was no longer there. Even looking around, Kouichi couldn't spot him. "Lobomon...?"

Everything slowly whirled around, becoming darker than before. His eyes fluttered shut. Kouichi could have sworn he heard a bird chirping...

-------------------------------------

"Ryuusei, hurry before we're too late," Ichiro muttered.

"Right. Kouji, you have to tell us if they get together! Otherwise, I'm moving in and taking her," Ryuusei shouted before he changed into Sorcermon and disappeared quickly in a brief flash of light before anyone could see.

Kouji shook his head. "As if! They'll be together! _I'll_ make sure of it."

"I'll help," Takuya added with a frown. "_You_ can't be trusted."

"What?" the bandana boy exclaimed.

"Yeah...if Junpei were here, he'd agree. Right, Tomo-oh, wait...he's showing Kako and Ms. Kimura _that_..."

"Yep." Kouji sighed, feeling the warmth of the fireplace. "Toss another stack of bandanas in, would you, Fujita?"

"It's _FUJITAKA_," the boy scowled, throwing in the last stack of bandanas, box and all. The flames licked at the cardboard and cloth, reducing it to nothingness.

"Anyway, he'll be here on the next plane. That's what Ichiro said," Ritsuo recalled.

"It's gone," Kouji sighed. He closed his laptop and placed it gently on the glass table in front of him. "I'll miss it."

"We all will."

"Yeah," Kouji agreed. _But then again_...

-------------------------------------

"Hurry up! He's about to go under!"

"That's all nice and good, but why is it that you're dressed in all black? And take off that mask! You make us look like burglars!"

"Just hurry up and get him!"

-------------------------------------

He could hear the sound of a bird cawing. Again, and again…

"What…?" Kouichi slowly opened his eyes and immediately closed him. The fading sunlight shone right in his face, and while the effect warmed him, his eyes were aching. "Where…?" _Where am I_?

"He's awake, Ichiro!"

Kouichi managed to open his eyes. "The ground…it's hard," he stated, gazing at the wooden overhang.

"No duh, Sherlock! Get up, lazy," snapped the voice of a boy his age.

_Ryuusei_. "Right…" Kouichi slowly pushed himself to a sitting position.

"Is he dry, Ryuusei?" Ichiro asked from inside.

"Ask _him_!" Ryu snapped.

Kouichi turned to Ryuusei. "What do you mean?"

"You were in the water. We had to fish you out…literally. You're lucky Ichiro's an expert diver," the boy muttered.

_I was in the water_…

"Duskmon!" the boy gasped, lurching forward. He clutched his stomach, eyes wide, as if the wind had been knocked out of him.

With a sigh, Ryuusei rose to his feet. "We bought you a ticket. You're going home first thing tomorrow…" he informed the boy. "And you better come in. It's going to be stormy tonight."

-------------------------------------

"Uhm…Mom? Yeah, I'm at the airport," Kouichi murmured into the phone. "No…Ichiro shoved the money in my hand and called it 'Birthday Money.' Yeah, he says, 'Hey.'" He paused, then added, "And he wants updates regularly. Well, Ryuusei does. Don't know why, though."

It had only been a day, and yet he felt as if nothing had happened. Was it supposed to feel like this? He wasn't sure…but he didn't _want_ to feel like nothing had happened.

How he planned to face everyone else…how he planned to face his mother…

Everything at home had changed. He was afraid to go back. _But I have to start again_, he told himself weakly.

"Mom…?" he whispered before she could hang up.

"_Yes?_" she answered. It was the same clear voice he remembered.

"I…I'll explain everything…when I come home. I promise."

-------------------------------------

It had already been a week. Yet it was also the first time Kouichi felt brave enough to talk about what had happened. Then again, perhaps it wasn't the time, but the people present.

Class without Ms. Kawai and Mr. Ogata was as normal as their lives had been before the Digital World. Aizawa had been quick to find replacements, and continued to reign as principal. Kouichi desperately wanted to know Aizawa's perspective on the matter, what with his 'enemy' (Marise, of course) being out of the picture, but respected the old man's silence and decided to leave the matter be. Good things supposedly came with time, Kouichi decided.

Despite what had happened, Kanaye continued his reputation, bullying Kouji, Kako, Takuya, and even Izumi (although usually the 'bullying' incidents were failed attempts at flirting). Ai kept him in check and continued to keep Naoko company. Fujitaka still did his best to stay with Naoko (the girl had set her sight on the free Kouji, no matter how much Kako warned her). And, as usual, Junpei and Ritsuo continued their newly found competitive activities, impressing no one. Junpei, however, _did_ gain the courage to ask someone out. With Ritsuo clumsily tripping while running _up_ the stairs, the date was guaranteed to Junpei. Izumi and Takuya held together through thick and thin (Kouji was bothering them with Kanaye's help) but it was the bandana boy who claimed to lead the way. Even Tomoki and Shinya had once again started up the 'Dastardly Duo Type Two,' as they called it. To Kouichi, it was all normal.

Yet today felt different. Kako standing in front of him, Kouji and Takuya arguing to his right over some new disastrous plan…

"It was only a week ago," Kako suddenly said. "You came back…and…and you actually told your mother everything."

Kouichi gazed at the ground and shrugged. "Well…"

She looked at him stoically. "It caused a bit of a trouble. Dad left the will for Yuko to take care of. It's a three way split between Youko, Hideki and me. Youko got the store, and she promised to stay, because Hideki's keeping the mansion. But you know, I can't take it anymore…"

"What?"

"Rai's still out there…so Hideki wants to look, but I'm-"

"What? Ms. Kawai's alive?" Takuya blurted, pushing Kouji away. The bandana boy didn't look too happy about it.

Kako nodded. "She is, but she's not coming here. So Hideki's mad." There was silence as the boys took the facts in. "By the way, we're moving to Kyoto tomorrow," the girl suddenly commented.

The boy looked up and chorused with his twin: "WHAT?"

"Yeah…apparently Mr. Genki got a job change."

"Who's 'Genki'?" Takuya asked Kouji.

"Her step-dad," Kouichi replied.

"OH…"

"And Hideki?" Kouichi asked in a murmur.

"Hideki wants to go to Kyoto to get a break for a while. He said something about girls…"

"Sounds typical. Tomorrow, huh?"

She smiled. "Yeah. First thing in the morning." Kako inclined her head in Kouichi's direction. "I'll see you sometime later," she murmured.

"NO! What are you doing?" Kouji hissed, slapping his forehead with his hand. _Now Ryuusei'll try and_…

Kouichi nodded. "Yeah."

_WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING?_ He gazed at his brother in disbelief as they all watched Kako wave and walk off, Takuya and Kouichi shouting their goodbyes.

"You moron," Kouji muttered, "why-WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING?"

Kouichi, who had been laughing at this point, stopped to explain, "Because…just last week, I was worried about saving the world…and…I'm not sure if it even happened…and now…"

"But she's _leaving_, Kouichi!"

"I know! Isn't it great?"

"WHAT?" Takuya shouted in disbelief. "Saying 'later' is okay, but being _glad_ that she's leaving…"

"Yeah…it's…great…" Kouichi sank to his feet and fell back. "I don't have to face her…for another few months."

Kouji and Takuya exchanged irked glances.

"Takuya, shall we carry out Operation KNACK?" Kouji growled.

"You mean Operation _KNOCK_," Takuya corrected, bringing out two inflated hammers. "Provided by Shinya," he added, handing one of the hammers to Kouji.

Kouichi's eyes widened, seeing the two creep up on him, hammers held behind their backs. "N-NO!"

As he was pelted with hits, Kouichi shut his eyes and drowned in his thoughts. _Was it really just last week…? It feels like so long ago_…_but_…_it's only been days_.

_Duskmon, Kako_…_everyone_…_thank you_…_and I promise_…_this is the last time I depend on you_.

-------------------------------------

Kako gazed at the hat in her hands. _I wonder if he even remembers you_, she thought, her grip tightening on the rough cloth.

"Yo, Kako, put that disgusting thing away," Hideki snapped.

She glared at her brother and hissed, "_You're_ the disgusting one, you pervert! Just wait until we get there…"

"I'll be waiting!"

"Excuse me, sir," a cabin attendant whispered, "you're disturbing the other passengers."

Kako watched as her brother grabbed the woman's hands. "How about I make it up with a date," he offered, until Kako slapped his hands away. The woman quickly made her way to the next passenger.

"See? Disgusting," she muttered. "Just wait until I tell Rai…"

"What?" he exclaimed. "But you don't know where she is!"

"Says you! _You're_ the only one she's avoiding!" Kako hissed, lowering her voice when she saw one of the cabin attendants walk by.

Unable to argue further, Hideki stuck his tongue out at his sister, then sat back in his seat, arms folded childishly. Kako, seeing this, suppressed a giggle and gazed down fondly at the hat. _Until then, Kouichi_.

-------------------------------------

"Woah…this stuff is great. Try some!" Kouji laughed, pouring himself another glass of the dark liquid.

Kouichi glared at him. "What did I tell you about getting drunk?" the older twin reprimanded. He pulled the bottle towards him and read the label. "You're too young to be drinking wine."

"Aw…come off it! A little won't hurt."

"Kouji…" Kouichi watched as the younger twin poured him a glass and pushed it his way. The older boy took the glass and poured its contents back in the bottle, frowning deeply at his brother as he did so.

"I'm kidding." The bandana boy smiled and placed his glass on the table. "It's sparkling cider. I switched the labels." He leaned back slightly and bent down to pick up his laptop. "What I _really_ want you to see is _this._" He opened the laptop and, after a few keystrokes, turned it so the screen faced his brother.

Lifting a newly poured glass to his lips, Kouichi examined the screen quietly. "But…that's…"

"Yep."

"But…"

"Say hello to the new Digital World."

Kouichi placed the glass down and stared, mouth open. His eyes slipped shut as he said with a hint of annoyance in his voice, "Kouji…"

"What?"

"THIS IS REALLY ALCOHOL!"

"What?" Kouji took his brother's glass and took a sip. Then, frowning, he murmured, "How did that happen?"

"That's _it_!" Kouichi snapped, standing up and seizing his brother's bandana (right off his head, too). While he marched to the fireplace he verified that it wasn't any special bandana. Then, throwing it down on a log, Kouichi began to search for a match.

"What?" Kouji asked again, frowning as he twisted around in his chair so he could see. "Are you going to worship my bandana?"

Instead of answering, Kouichi held up a lit match. Before Kouji could say anything, the match fell on top of the bandana, creating a larger flame that spread outward, consuming the bandana first, and soon spreading to the logs.

Kouji just watched, mouth open in horror, grip tightening on the chair. Then, groaning, he fell out of his seat and cried, "Not again…_NOT THE BANDANA!_"

-------------------------------------

A/N-

How long has it been? I'm really sorry. REALLY. Truth be told, I actually skipped a scene, then added another. I extended the whole wine scene (and no, Kouichi didn't drink any). It's really quiet…isn't it? No real action. Just subtle deletion…and reappearance. But I learned a lot from writing this. And so I _know_ "Cursed Gifts" will be better. You guys probably won't think so, though. I'm sorry! But I really, really enjoyed exploring their characters…and I enjoyed meeting everyone I did through the story, too. It teaches you, if you pay attention, a lot about writing, and a lot about people in general.

But _finally_! I finished NTB3! It's a relief. So have a good New Year's Day! 2007….:shivers:. I feel old already…

**_Thank you to everyone who reviewed in this story, who took the time to read this story, and who gave me support_. _You're all awesome people_. _Hopefully I'll run into you all again_.**

K, aka dragonsunlight.


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